Promise of the Night
by Blueberrycat93
Summary: After getting lost in a forest Vanessa would never have guessed that an unsuspecting wish would suddenly catapult her into a world of talking animals and dangerous situations. Now shrunk to mouse size, she goes on an adventure with the little bat Shade in order to find the colony of the Silverwings. Will they make it before it's too late? (Self-insert, follows book & TV version)
1. The raven and the pearl

**Chapter 1: The raven and the** **pearl**

* * *

Everything seemed quite calm, as the sun was setting in the west while an autumnal breeze blew coldly through the thick forest in southern Canada.  
For the most animals, it was time to go back to their dens and nests in order to get a good amount of sleep for the next day, while only a few insects stayed whirring around. Having nothing to worry until the night active creatures would wake up and hunt them down for their breakfast.

Thanks to the wind a little, brown leaf, not bigger than a young child's hand, lost its grip on a branch and wafted down softly through the air.

Right before it could touch the ground a different air stream caught the leaf spinning it away and a raven with feathers as black as the night and sparkling blue eyes landed down between the roots of the great, old maple tree.

Vigilantly he scanned the area as if in search of something very important. But whatever it might be, there was no trace of it here. At least not yet.  
However, the bird decided to wait. Not caring about the wind and the cold that caused him to ruffle his feathers.

After a while, he randomly began scratching through the dirt with his claws, in order to fight the boredness which was getting to him slowly.  
But for that, he only used his left talon while his right stood still on the ground, wherein he held a tiny object.  
A very important object which he knew he couldn't lose. Not before meeting the one he was looking for the whole time and who still hasn't arrived yet. But no matter how long it would take the bird would wait.

Suddenly there was a snap in the undergrowth, causing the raven to turn his head in order to see what was going on.

A tall creature stepped out from behind the trees looking like nothing the raven had ever seen before in his life. Was this the one he was looking for? This strange creature standing right before him covered in weird colorful leaves and a bunch of brown fur on its head?

For just a brief moment the raven did nothing besides looking directly into the creatures olive-green eyes with his own sapphire blue ones. Then he eventually blinked shortly and back up into the sky.  
Leaving behind a very confused looking human girl in her early twenties.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

(A few minutes earlier)

''Why don't you visit the lake in the local forest. It's a great place to relax.''

Grinning my teeth I kept walking through the woods, thinking about the wonderful advice from the receptionists by the hotel I checked in a few days ago.  
Sure she had been right with the place. It really was nice and relaxing to sit there in the middle of nature with just the sound of animals around and no other people there to bother me.  
I actually really enjoyed it sitting there on the bank of the lake, reading a book and listening to some music on my cellphone.  
Everything was just fine except the fact that I forgot to check the time and got lost on my way back.

Seriously how could I've been so stupid? Going into an, to me, unknown forest in a foreign country without a map or a flashlight or anything. Did I think this was like a walk in a park or something? I really should have known something like this would happen. Especially after having some problems finding the lake in the first place.

It was already bad enough that my sense of direction was as bad as the one of a pebble but the advancing darkness made it even worse.  
It practically decreased my chances of finding a way out but raised the inevitable in spending the night alone in the forest.

And that without a tent or a sleeping bag.

The only things I had with me were the clothes on my body and a bag around my shoulder with some snacks, a water bottle, a book and my cellphone inside. There was nothing that could've kept me warm through the cold night.  
My light brown jacket was too thin just like my black sweater I wore underneath and my dark aubergine colored jeans.  
Furthermore, my water bottle was almost empty, my cellphone low on battery and a single apple and some cookies my only leftovers to eat.

How frustrating.

Nevertheless, I knew complaining alone wouldn't help me to get out so I did my best and continued my way through the thicket.

Several times I wiped away strands of my long dark brown hair, which the wind kept smacking into my face cheerfully, while I stumbled across roots and sticks on the floor covered in colorful leaves.

Now and then I flinched, hearing unexpected sounds like the call of an animal or the crackle of wood when I broke a twig by stepping on it.  
With the increasing darkness around me, my surroundings certainly started to creep me out a bit.  
More than I ever I wanted nothing more than to get out of the deep forest.

Joyfully I found an opening between to threes and stepped through, hoping it was my way out.  
But instead, I came to a small clearing, bathed in moonlight.  
 _How nice,_ I thought, even though I was a bit disappointed and looked around until I spotted a black bird right in front of me between the roots of a large maple tree.

For a moment I did nothing but stared at the bird, while he stared back at me with his unique blue eyes. I wasn't sure if it was a raven or a crow though but this one seemed to be special.

Never before had I seen a raven or a crow with such eyes. The ones I saw had black eyes not blue.

Slightly confused I kept this staring contest up until the raven suddenly blinked and flew away without making a sound.

Still puzzled I watched him fly away before sitting down by the maple tree, wanting to rest my feet from all this walking. Just as I sat down I noticed something shiny under the leave right next to me.

Curiously I wiped away the leaves and pulled out a tiny pea-sized pearl with a beautiful sapphire blue coloring which reminded me of the unusual eyes from the raven.

Did he lose this pearl here? If so, where did he get it and was this even a real pearl or just a fake?

Various questions run through my head while I looked at the pearl, rolling it between my fingers but much less I knew what to do with it now?  
It sure was pretty, the little pearl, but since I didn't like tiny things like bugs and jewelry so much I didn't quite feel like keeping it with me.

However, before I could decide what to do with it I glanced up into the sky hearing a fluttering sound above my head. Happily, I saw a bunch of bats flying through the night.  
Unfortunately, as quick as they came as quick they went away again.

I sighed, still looking up at the darkening sky, watching the stars appearing one by one.  
Just for the moment, I allowed myself to forget about my miserable situation and just kept staring at the starry sky, hoping to see at least one more bat.  
But instead, I saw something else. A bright light dashing over the night sky.

''No way!'' I called in astonishment. I had never seen a shooting star before in my live and was really happy to be lucky enough to see one now. Despite the fact that I got lost this day wasn't so bad after all. First the relaxing afternoon at the lake and now bats and a shooting star.

I knew I couldn't stay here all night but I wanted to keep watching the sky, just for a little while longer. Maybe I was lucky to see more shooting stars or even another bat. But nothing.

''I wish I could meet another bat.'' I sighed crestfallen and didn't notice the strange thing that happened to the tiny pearl in my hand.

Without warning the pearl began to glow brightly in a bright blue light. So bright as if someone was shining a flashlight right into my face. Confused about what was happening I shut my eyes tightly in order not to get blind while holding the pearl as far away from me as possible.  
Unfortunately, the light got even bigger and brighter until it completely engulfed me with its bluish color.  
On top of that, I was starting to feel a headache coming up, followed by a sudden different pain in my left hand in which I held the pearl. It felt like someone just stung a needle into me.

I wanted to let go of the pearl and away from the pain and the light but for some odd reason I just couldn't.  
It wasn't like I couldn't move more that I was unable to let go of the pear. Instead of opening my hand to let the pearl fall to the ground I simply clenched my fingers around it as if not wanting to let go of it at all. No matter what I did my hand stayed this way, not listening to me at all while the pain grew worse each second.  
Eventually, it got so bad I began to feel dizzy and collapsed right onto the floor in the middle of the forest.

* * *

 **AN: _Here it is the first chapter of my rewritten Silverwing Fanfiction. Please read and review ^^_**


	2. A talking bat?

**Chapter 2: A talking bat?**

* * *

I awoke in total darkness with my head hurting like hell.  
 _Alright, what's going on?_ I thought fearfully and at first didn't remember anything about what had happened. But after a few seconds of sitting there and calming my nerves, I eventually recalled my evening walk through the forest with no way out, the blue-eyed raven and the weird pearl which suddenly started glowing like a spotlight. And then ...  
''I guess I must have lost consciousness or something.'' I assumed while still wondering where I was. This place surely didn't look like the forest. Then again it was so dark I couldn't even see a thing let alone my own hand before my eyes.  
In the distance, I located a faint light and carefully crawled over to it, while feeling confused about the soft surface under my fingers.

Finally, I reached some kind of opening and stepped outside just to find myself still in the small clearing in the middle of the forest. Looking around I figured I must have been out for quite a while since it was nighttime already. Everything was dark and quiet besides a few bugs whizzing around by some flowers nearby.

Weird. Was it just me or did those flowers look a bit ... bigger than they actually should be? Blinking in confusion I looked again, noticing everything around me much bigger than I remember it to be.

''What in the...?''

Hearing some rustling, I looked down on a carpet-sized leaf right under my bare feet.  
How strange ... Wait! Bare feet? What happened to my shoes?  
Now I felt totally confused and looked down carefully on myself, having a bad feeling.

Like expected I wasn't just missing my socks and shoes but were also all my other clothes.

In other words. I was stark naked.  
''WHAT THE HELL?!'' Frantically I covered my private parts up with my arms and hands while looking around for my missing clothes. What happened to them and what was this for a strange cave I woke up ear...? Oh!  
Turning around I noticed that the so called cave was actually a sleeve of my black sweater, meaning there could be only one logical explanation. I got shrunk. ... Wait! ... WHAT?

How in the world was this possible? That didn't make any sense. People don't get turned into mouse-sized versions of themselves just like that. Well, maybe in movies and such but not in reality.  
Did someone use a shrinking ray on me or ... wait a second!

''The pear! That blue light must have done this to me,'' I said feeling very sure about it, even though it still sounded crazy. But it was the only solution I could come up with. Unfortunately, I ascertained the pearl missing. Either it was hidden somewhere under my huge clothes or it kind of disappeared. Anyway, I couldn't see it anywhere.

''Just great. Now what?'' feeling helpless I sat down on my sweater, thinking about what I should do. First I got lost and now I was shrunk and naked. Things couldn't just get any worse from this.  
But they did.

Just a moment later I heard a loud cawing sound coming from above my head. I looked up and saw a black bird flying down. It was a raven just like the one I saw earlier but with regularly black eyes, instead of bright blue ones. The landed a few steps from me away on the ground looked at me steadfastly. Then without a warning, it cawed again and charged.  
Quick-witted I jumped out of the way right before the raven could spear me with its sharp beak, so it made a hole in my sweater instead.  
''Stop that! I'm not a bug,'' I called indignantly but the bird didn't listen and started an another attack.  
Quickly I ran away as fast as I could away from the bird, hoping to get rid of it somehow.

It didn't take long until felt my breath running out. Luckily I found a small hiding place under a shrubbery. ''That was close,'' I said in relief while trying to catch my breath. I wondered if the raven was gone but didn't dare to check, in case it was still there. I did not want to run more through the thicket. At least not without any clothes on.  
''Hm, maybe those leaves could be useful to me?'' I said thoughtfully while looking at a bunch of big green leaves right next to me. Instantly I tore off two large leaves and wrapped them around my body, then I plucked a few long and strong looking grass stalks and wrapped them around my waist as well but more like a belt so my leaf-dress would stay in place.  
''Much better,'' I said happily but my joy was short-lived as I heard the familiar cawing sound back above my head. ''Oh, not again.'' Again I tried to run away but this time the bird was faster.  
Before I could do anything, two large and sharp talons grabbed me by the arms and pulled me up into the sky.

''WHAAA! NO! LET GO!'' I screamed while wiggling around wildly in the birds grasp.  
Unfortunately, the raven didn't want to let me go just like that, so I did the best thing I could think of at the moment and bite the bird right into its foot. Screaking in pain the raven let go of me and I realized the big stupidly in my plan.

Like a hailstone, I fell straight towards the ground and right into a tree. Down and down I fell, brushing the branches and scratching my arms and legs in the progress.  
Finally, I managed to grab hold on a twig of the lowest branch of the tree. For a moment I just hung there, catching my breath while feeling a shiver running down my spine because of the shock.  
After taking a deep breath in order to calm me back down I tried climbing up the branch. Unfortunately, my fingers kept slipping off from the wood.  
''Ngh, now come on...!'' Frantically I dug my fingers into it and tried my best to ignore my racing heartbeat and the upcoming panic from being so high above the ground.

''Alright Vanessa, calm down. You are almost there. Just ... a little fur...Yikes!'' Again my fingers slipped, so I quickly wrapped my arms and legs around the twig feeling scared of falling down.

The twig shook strongly under my weight, while I clung to it like a sloth.  
A pretty much scared to death sloth by the way.

Not knowing what to do I closed my eyes, wishing myself to be someplace else. I quickly opened them again as soon as I heard an ominous cracking sound, knowing this twig was definitely too thin to hold my weight any longer. ''Oh, please no.'' I hissed hoping desperately the twig would stand firm but it didn't. With another crack the twig finally lost its grip on the branch. I almost screamed and saw myself already crashing onto the floor like a raw egg. But instead I felt a hand grabbing my own right before I could follow the twig into the deep.

''Don't worry I gotcha,'' said a masculine sounding voice right above me.  
Wondering who that could be I let myself get pulled up and then just sat there on the branch and let out a sigh in relief.

I was still not completely safe, but at least I wasn't dangling in midair anymore.

''Are you alright?'' the stranger asked me and I looked up to see who it was. No idea what I expected but definitely not what I saw standing before me.  
It was a bat. A male one with light blue fur, dark blue wings and a creme colored mane. Under his chin grew a dark blue goatee and his deep yellow eyes starred worryingly into my own.

''Eh,...I-I'm fine,'' I said, feeling amazed and slightly freaked out by the sight of a real bat so close right in front of me.

A talking bat. How on earth was this even possible? Then again, thinking about everything else that had happened to me this night, let alone the fact that I somehow ended up getting shrunk it shouldn't surprise me that much at all. But still...  
''I'm alright. Thank you,'' I repeated myself but saw him not completely buying my words.

''You sure?'' he asks, raising an eyebrow, ''you look kinda shocked. Then again I shouldn't blame you. You almost fell to your death. May I ask what you were doing on that twig anyway?''

''Well I ... There was this raven who tried to kidnap me, I think. So ... I bite its foot to make it let go of me which probably wasn't such a good idea because we were flying high above the sky. Luckily I could catch myself on the twig to stop my fall before it broke.''

''I see,'' the bat said thoughtfully then shrugged ''Well, at least you are safe now. That's the main point.''

''Hehe, yeah...safe.'' I grinned my teeth not completely agreeing with the bat on that matter but didn't say anything.

''Excuse me but may I ask you a question?'' he asked carefully, causing me to look at him slightly confused.

''Ehm, sure. What is it?''

''What are you?''

I felt speechless for a second and wondered if I should tell him the truth but then again what else could I say? ''I am a human,'' I told him.

The bat looked at me in surprise. ''A human? But does are giants and you are ... well no offense but you are surely not the size I imagined humans to be,'' he said.

''Yeah, that's kind of a long story but I really am a human even though I'm not as big as I should be.''  
He still seemed confused but didn't ask any more questions about it.

''Well, alright then human. Do you have a name?''

''Sure, it's Vanessa.''

''Nice to meet you, Vanessa. I am Mercury, messanger and scout of the Silverwing colony,'' he introduced himself with a friendly smile. I blinked in confusion. Messenger? Silverwing? What was that supposed to mean? But before I could ask, there was a sudden growling sound coming from my stomach. Reminding me that I hadn't eaten anything since noon beside the snack I had with me on my pick nick by the lake.

''Was that your stomach?'' Mercury asked with a nod towards my belly.

''Eh, yes. It's been a while since I've eaten something.'' I said, feeling slightly ashamed that he had heard it too.

''I see but having an empty stomach isn't so good during this time of the year. If you want I could catch you something to eat,'' he offered.

''Oh, ok sure, but you really don't have to.''

He smiles at me. ''It's alright. I just want to help, besides I kind of doubt you can get yourself some food in your size,'' he said and looked at me as in checking my body size.

Now I started to feel slightly offended. What did that mean I can't get me some food by my size? I would have loved to show him how wrong he was with that. But on the other hand, he was probably talking about the fact that I couldn't really go anywhere. Unlike him, I had no wings, so I was practically stuck on that tree we sat on.

Mercury looked around with a slight frown on his face. ''Hm, There is still some time to get you some food but I think I should take you to my colony first.''

''Why?'' I asked ''Uh, I mean wouldn't that make a stir when you come back with a human?''

Mercury shook his head. ''No offense Vanessa but you don't look very dangerous to me. Though there probably are some bats who will be quite shocked to see you. But it will be alright. Besides, I would feel bad if I left you here outside on your own.''

''Ehm, ok but how do we get to your colony? I mean I can't fly so...''

''Just climb on my back I'll carry you over,'' Mercury said and bend down a little. I hesitated for a second but then climbed on. Soon after he stretched out his leathery wings and jumped back into the air. I did my best not cling on him to tightly and shut my eyes until I felt him landing again.

As I opened my eyes I noticed that we were on a branch of another tree with a round opening before us which I assumed to be the entrance.  
I climbed down from Mercury's back and heard him asking me once more if I was feeling alright.

He probably thought the greenish color in my face was because of the nervousness about what might happen next. I just old him I was fine and didn't explain the real reason. Mercury nodded and walked inside.

I hesitated a moment, wondering if this was really a good idea? Then again there wasn't actually any other place I could go to, so I had no choice and followed Mercury into the tree.

* * *

 **AN: _Chapter 2. Hope you like it ^^_**


	3. Council of Elders

**Chapter 3: Council of Elders**

* * *

It was pretty much dark inside. And I needed a while before my eyes got used to the faint light coming from the entry. But then I managed to see a giant hollow space with lots of ledges in different sizes going around the mossy tree walls from the bottom to the top.  
Hundreds of bats were either lying around in the tree or just roosting upside down on the mushroom shaped ledges.  
I began to feel a bit nervous despite what Mercury said earlier. I couldn't help myself but felt like most of them won't be happy to see someone like me inside their home.

''Now, just wait here for a moment Vanessa. I have to go and inform the elders about your arrival. Won't be long,'' said Mercury before flying up to the top of the tree, leaving me behind on the ledge by the entrance.  
I tried to stay calm while waiting for him to come back. Still, I felt the gaze of dozens of eyes glancing down at me with curiosity and worry. The tension grew even bigger the more bats notices me and pretty soon I heard them whispering t each other.

''Do you see that?''

''What is that?''

''Is that ... a human?''

''Aren't they supposed to be bigger?''

''What's a human doing here in our home?''

''Hey!'' I gasped slightly and turned around to see a small young male hanging upside down from the ledge above me and a friendly smile on his face. He had light blue colored fur and blonde hair.

''Ehm ... hi,'' I greeted him back, unsure what else I should say.

The bat, who I assumed to be a teenager in human age looked down at me curiously with his light green eyes. He had probably never seen a real human in his life before.

''You must be new here,'' he said. ''I saw you coming in with Mercury. What's your name?''

''It's Vanessa,'' I told him.

''Nice to meet you, Vanessa. My name is Shade. Say are you really a human?'' he asks looking at me doubtfully. ''I thought they are supposed to much bigger.''

''Well, the things is...'' But before I could tell him my story, I got interrupted by the concerned voice of an adult Silverwing female. ''Shade!'' she called out and flew down next to him on the ledge. Her fur was dark purple and her hair looked orange-red and surrounded her face like the mane of a lion. ''Here you are. I've been looking all over for you,'' she says with a stern look in her eyes, then hugs him.

''Mom, I'm fine,'' Shade protested while wiggling out of his mothers grasp. ''I was just talking with our guest here.''

''What guest?'' Glancing down she lets out a small shocked gasp as she noticed me and backs away, wrapping her wings protectively around her son.  
Annoyed about his mother's behavior Shade once again struggled out of her grip.  
''Mom, what are you doing?''

''Shade, humans are dangerous. You never know what they're up to,'' she explained to him while watching me carefully as id expecting I would suddenly attack them or something.

It made feel awful a she had a point. Animals should be wary of humans, just as we humans should be wary of wild animals.  
But what kind of danger could I pose with my current size? I was just as big as them and all on my own while the bats were definitely in the majority here.

''Mom, look at her. Does she really look dangerous to you?'' Shade asked. Probably thinking the same.  
I glanced up, noticing Shade's mom watching me thoughtfully. A second later she turned back to her son with a soft sigh. ''That doesn't matter now Shade,'' she said, ''It's more important someone informs the elders about this human in our home.'' Right then Mercury returned and landed next to me on the ledge.

''Alright, Vanessa. I've told the elders that you are here.''

''Mercury, do you know this human?'' Shade's mother asked him surprised. Mercury nodded.  
''Yes Ariel, I have met her recently in the forest. But I don't have time to talk right now. Frieda wants to see her.''  
 _See me. But why?_ I wondered but didn't say anything, figuring I would find it out soon anyway.  
However, Ariel still seemed unsure about my presence, but then nodded. ''Well, I suppose you certainly have your reasons to bring her here Mercury,'' she said.

''I'll tell you more about it later but now we have to go. The elders are waiting,'' Mercury said sounding a bit impatiently. Ariel nodded. ''Come Shade!'' she said, wanting to leave.

''Can't I go with them?'' he asked, ''I'd like to know what the elders want from her.''

''I'm sure you'll find out soon enough. But now come you can go to the elders one other time.''  
Grumbling in disappointment Shade followed his mother up to their roost

''Now then, please follow me, Vanessa,'' Mercury said and I quickly grabbed his arm before he could fly up again, causing him to look back at me.

''Aren't you forgetting something?'' I asked. ''I can't fly remember?''

Mercury face-palmed himself. ''Oh right. Sorry about that. It totally slipped my mind,'' he says, then bends down a little. ''Just climb on my back. I'll carry you up then.''

''Ehm, ok,'' I said and as soon as I sat on his back Mercury flew up the trunk. The higher we went the more grateful I was to be unable to see the bottom below. Only my feelings reminded me that I was way too far away from the ground. I tried my best not think about it so much and also tried to ignore the eyes of hundreds of bats looking at me as we passed by.

We flew past countless aisles and ledges until we approached the upper regions of the tree.  
The queasy feeling in my stomach intensified by the thought of standing in front of a group of wild bats and answering their questions.  
I know I should have been pleased. After all, I had always wanted to see real bats up close. But the fact that for some reason I was able to communicate with them, gave me the unpleasant feeling of being in front of other people from my kind instead of animals. Not really something I appreciate.

Finally, we arrived at the highest spot of the tree and Mercury landed on another ledge that grew a bit further into the middle.

After I climbed down from his back he swung back into the air and flew up to another ledge far above me, where four older females hung together, chatting quietly.  
Mercury flew straight to the largest of them and whispered something in her ear before landing back next to me on the ledge.  
Nervously, I watched how the four elders flew down from their roost and down on top of another mushroom shaped ledge right above me.  
Despite her supposedly high age, they all looked quite healthy and vigorous. Surely they were all still skillful hunters like the younger bats in the colony.

''Human. Please, step forward,'' ordered the tallest of them and I obeyed. ''I am Frieda Silverwing, the chief elder of this colony and these here are the other elders Lucretia, Bathsheba and Aurora.''  
With an expanding gesture, she motions towards herself and her colleagues. The fur on her head and arms were in a light brown-grey color while the main fur was rose-colored and like a long sleeveless dress going from her dark brown mane down to her feet. Her wings, however, were dark purple and her hair long and white with grey tips.  
On her left stood Lucretia. She was almost as tall as Frieda with dark, grayish purple wings and mauve colored fur. She also had a tan colored mane and long cotton white hair, which looked almost like Friedas but without the long bangs over her shoulders.

On Frieda's right stood Bathsheba and Aurora.  
Bathsheba was the smallest and pudgiest of the four. She had dark grey fur and wings, a silver-grey mane and white colored hair. Aurora, who seemed to be the youngest, was a plum colored bat with a grey-white mane, wine-red wings and silver hair.

They all looked at me with friendly but curious eyes, except for Bathsheba. She was the only one who glared down at me with a coldly, which gave me quite the feeling of unwelcomeness.  
Luckily Frieda seemed to be more hospitable than her.  
''My child. Mercury told us that he found you in the forest after you fell from the sky. Is this true?'' she asked me with a friendly smile but instead of replying I just stood there in blank astonishment, wondering if this was all really real or just a dream and I'm actually still lying unconsciousness somewhere in the forest.

''Talk when you're asked to human!'' Bathsheba snapped, pulling me out of my daydream.

''Bathsheba!'' Frieda scowled her. ''Guard your tongue. This is no way to speak to our guest.''  
The chubby elder just huffed her gaze undeterred past the chief elder.  
''Our guest you say? I don't think anyone here would invite a human into our colony,'' she said.

''I did,'' Mercury said while glaring challengingly up at Bathsheba.

''And why, if I may ask, did you bring someone like this into our home? Is there any reason for you to bring such danger to our colony?

''I beg your pardon Bathsheba but I highly doubt we have anything to fear from her. Just look at her size. What threat could she pose to us?''

Bathsheba shook head. ''As our messenger and scout, it is your duty to keep the colony safe from all possible harms. This human might be small but who says she didn't just shrunk herself temporarily and only waits for the right opportunity to get big again and kill us all?''

''Bathsheba I think you overreacting a bit here,'' said Aurora with an amused smile on her face, earning an angry glare from the chubby elder.

''Definitely not,'' she said, ''A Human should not be around here and listen to what we are talking about.''  
Aurora gave out a brief laugh. ''Please, calm yourself, Bathsheba. We don't even know if she can understand our language.''

''Oh, she does understand our tongue. I just talked with her recently,'' said Mercury.

Aurora blinked in surprise. ''Really? How interesting. I always thought humans and animals can't understand each other.''

''Then why don't we just pause this discussion and let her answer our questions?'' asked Lucretia with a slightly irritated undertone.  
Aurora nodded. ''You are right. Please, human tell us your name and what you are doing in our forest?''

I took a deep breath, unsure how to start. I already felt like they wouldn't even believe a word. ''My name is Vanessa and yes I am a human and I can understand what you are all saying but just like you I have no idea how this is possible. Maybe it's because I got shrunk. In my original size, I wasn't able to do this though.  
For why, I'm here? Well, that kinda a weird story. You see I got lost in this forest after a nice relaxing day near a lake and came to a clearing where there was this raven with sapphire blue eyes and a small pearl in the same color. This pearl suddenly glew in a bright blue light and must have shrunk me somehow.  
I lost consciousness for a while and after I woke up again I got attacked by another raven who dragged me up into the air. I managed to get free by biting its food and fell down on a twig on a nearby tree. Luckily Mercury was there to pull me up on the branch before the twig broke off.''

The Silverwing male nodded. ''That's right. After this, I decided to bring her here since the sun is rising soon and I didn't think it would be the right thing for me to just leave her there in the opening all by herself.

Being so small and without wings to fly how would she be able to get down from the tree or even survive in the forest in the first place?''

''Why should we care?'' said Bathsheba unapologetically. ''She is none of us. An intruder. Who knows if she is even telling us the truth?''

Lucretia nodded. ''I must admit. I have never seen or heard about a raven with blue eyes or about a pearl that shrinks people.''

''Lies or no lies that don't matter,'' Aurora said, ''The fact is she won't survive one night out in the woods, not without help, just like Mercury had said.''

Bathsheba was shocked. ''You don't suggest keeping her here with us do you?'' she asked looking at the other elder. ''A human in our colony?!''

I looked away, feeling mortified by Bathsheba's harsh words. Why did she have to be so mean? I didn't do anything to her or her colony. What a disappointment. Of course, I shouldn't feel too much  
disenchanted. If animals could talk to me like humans then it was just natural for me to recognize some human characteristics in them as well.  
Still, it wasn't in my attention to stay here, while they keep talking about me like this. Rather, would I try my luck outside in the woods and figure out a way to turn myself back.  
Therefore, I quietly tried sneaking away while the four elders kept discussing about my well-being.  
I know, not a very nice move from me but it wasn't like they would mind anyway. But before I could even think about how to get down from the ledge I felt Mercury's hand around my wrist. Stopping me in my tracks.

Slightly surprised I turned around and saw him looking at me seriously. Was he angry at me for trying to go way without saying goodbye?  
''Don't listen to what Bathsheba says,'' he says to me with a smile, ''We are not so inhospitable like she may lead you to believe. We won't kick you out just like that. There is nothing you have done wrong.''

''Exactly.'' I gulped and looked up to see Frieda looking down at me with her lime green eyes. Did she notice my attempt to escape or did she just ignored it? ''We Silverwings do not hang somebody out to dry. Weather it's animal or human.''  
I smiled at her thankfully and ignored Bathsheba's indignantly snorts.

''Thank you, Frieda, ''I said with a brief bow, ''That's ehm... very kind of you but I don't wish to be a burden to someone.''

''Don't worry my child, you aren't,'' Frieda said with a warm smile on her face.

''Alright but ... it's true I can't stay here for long. I have to find a way to change myself back to my original size.''

''I know my dear,'' Frieda said, ''But don't worry. I may know of someone who might be able to help.''

''Really?'' She nodded. ''Yes, but he lives in a city a few nights far from here. Fortunately, in just a few weeks it's time for our journey to our winter roost in the south. You may come with us then, so you can meet him.''

''That's great. Thank you very much,'' I said.

''Are you out of your mind Frieda?'' asked Bathsheba outraged , ''She is not like us. She has no wings. How will she move from place to place or hunt her own food? She will be just a nuisance.''

''I've decided that she stays,''Frieda said glaring down at her. ''I won't change my mind and send her away on her possible death just because she isn't a bat like us.'' Lucretia seemed a bit unsure about this. ''Frieda you know I'm mostly on your side and I also don't wish to send her out in the woods but Bathsheba has a point.''

''That's right.'' Aurora said, sounding unsure about this as well, ''On her own Vanessa won't be able to go somewhere without help. She cannot fly and climbing from place to place would probably take too long as well to find food or to get back home before the sun comes up.''

The chief elder put a hand on her chin, thinking about this.

''And don't forget about the owls,'' Bathsheba mentioned, ''I doubt they will be happy to hear about a human living with animals and understanding their tongue.''  
I felt confused. Why should the owls bother about me being around and talking animal tongue?  
This was very confusing. But before I could ask I saw Frieda opening her wings for silence.

''My friends you are quite right. Those are problems we cannot ignore, but they also won't have an impact on my decision. Vanessa stays with us until she finds a way to turn herself back to her original size.''

''But ...?'' Bathsheba tried to protest but Frieda stopped her again with a wave of her hand and continued to speak. ''Mercury, since you are the one who brought her to us I ask you to take care of her.''

Mercury blinked in surprise by that request. ''Ehm, of course, Frieda but what about my duties. I cannot neglect them.''

''Therefore you are free to choose someone to help you with this task but I believe Vanessa should have you as the main contact to go to in case of questions and problems.''  
The Scout thought about this then nodded. ''Alright. I'll do it, Frieda.'' For some reason, I kinda start feeling like some foundling while listening to them talking about me like that.  
''However there is still the problem with the owls,'' Frieda said apprehensively before looking back down at me again. ''I'm afraid as long as we don't know what to do on that matter you'll have to stay here inside tree heaven. No matter of day or night. The risk might be too high that you will be seen from other animals who will report it to the owls. Are you alright with this?''  
I nodded while biting down on my underlip. I was not completely ok with being stuck in a dark tree but what else could I do. Besides, I had always been an indoor person so how bad could it be?

After this everything seemed settled and Mercury and I got dismissed and flew back down to the other Silverwings. The Silverwing male landed on a ledge not too far away from Shade and his mother Ariel with a small crack in the wall and a small room behind it. Checking it out I figured it was big enough for me to use it as my new bedroom. On the opposite wall was a tiny hole wherewith I could see outside. The only thing what was missing was comfortable bedding but I assumed I had to get used to sleeping on plain wood.

''I hope this is place is ok. Otherwise, I could look for a better place for you to stay,'' Mercury said.  
I shook my head. ''No, this is fine,'' I said, ''Thank you.''

''No problem. Now if you excuse me. I'll be right back,'' he said and flew back out of the tree without saying why. While I waited for his return I sat down in the alcove and took a look outside through the hole in the wall. According to the light, it was close to dawn.

I still couldn't quite believe what all happened this night. I even wondered if, as soon as I fell asleep, I will wake up back in the hotel figuring this all was a dream. Just then I heard some wings flapping and turned around to see Mercury back with some leaves and something indefinable big in his claws.

''Here, that's for you,'' he said and handed the leaves and the thing, which to my horror was a dead hairy moth, over to me. ''Something for you to use as a blanket and some food.''  
A part of me was on the brink of eating the leaves and using the bug as my blanket. Unfortunately, I knew this wasn't exactly what Mercury had in mind.  
Smiling nervously I generously took his gift while trying my best not to show how disgusted I was by the idea of eating an insect. I knew I could have told him that humans usually don't eat raw bugs but I didn't want to him to fly out again just because I don't want to eat this moth.  
Seriously how hard could it be? Preparing for the worst I pulled the moth up to my mouth, feeling happy that it was dead at least and took a small bite.

It was disgusting. Never before had I eaten anything like this. I had to use all my will power not to spit everything out again and chewed down as fast as possible while trying not to touch too much of it with my tongue.  
Yet, I ate it up completely not only because of all the eyes I felt watching me eating the bug but also because I was very hungry and moth did fill up my stomach pretty much.

After my meal I let out a soft yawn, realizing how tired I must be. I was awake the whole day and almost the whole night. It was time for me to get some rest. Therefore, I said good day to Mercury and laid down in the alcove and fell asleep, using the leaves as my blanket.

* * *

 **AN: _Sorry for taking so long but here is chapter 3. Hope you like it. ^^_**


	4. Law Breaking

**Chapter 4: Law Breaking**

* * *

The following nights I stayed inside, keeping my promise not to leave the tree no matter why.

I occupied my time with watching the forest through my little window and carefully walking around the ledges. I figured that they were all connected with small bridges between, by which I was able to move around. Also since I was now asleep on the day and awake on the night, my vision got more used to the dark. However, I still couldn't see enough to run around without fear of tripping off the edges.

Whenever it was possible, Mercury kept his promise in visiting me before he needed to be back on his duties. He talked with me about many things and also told me some things about the history of the Silverwings and their home called Tree-Heaven. A vast, ancient oak, once stroke by a lightning but still standing on the bank of a lake by which I wondered if it was the same lake where I had my picknick on.

Mercury explained that the oak was the Silverwings nursery. All females lived here with their young while the males were spending the summer in a place called Stonehold. A small canyon around two nights far from here.

Every winter, both groups would come upon for the long journey to Hibernaculum, where they would sleep through the cold season until it gets warm again.

As I asked him why he was living here then instead with the other males, he explained it was a tradition that each spring one of the males gets chooses to become the females scout. That male had to live with them during the summer and had to make sure the females and their young were alright. He warns them in the case of danger and sends messages from them over to their mates in stonehold and back.

It was very fascinating for me to hear about these things but unfortunately, Mercury couldn't stay with me all night to tell me more and asked Ariel if she was so kind to take care of me while he was busy with his duties.

At first, Ariel seemed unsure about it and kept her distance from me but after a few nights, she became less reserved, finally realizing I was no harm to her son or anyone else and treated me like her own child. However, most of the Silverwings were still cautious around me while others either ignored or just changed a few words with me. It was a bit sad but I didn't feel lonely. Besides Mercury and Ariel, I also spend a lot of time with Ariel's son Shade, who I quickly made friends with.

I told him all I could about my life and humans in general while he answered my questions about his and bats life in general and also demonstrated his flight and hunting skills to me. I had to admit he was pretty good at it but his landings needed some practice.

Unfortunately, we couldn't talk long, because Ariel wanted Shade to use the night to find as much food as possible in order to build up fat reserves for the upcoming winter.

Ariel had to do the same which made me feel guilty since she had to find food for me as well. But according to her, this wasn't a problem. She was just happy to help.

* * *

One night, a few hours before dawn, I once again sat down on the edge of a ledge, despite my fear of heights and dangled my legs into the deep. Letting out a soft yawn I stretched myself and thought about the migration. In just about three nights the colony would start its long journey to Hibernaculum and I was supposed to go with them. Just like Nils Holgerson from this Swedish children's book who traveled through the country together with a flock of wild geese.

I was kinda worried though. I knew Frieda did not just want me to come along to meet this friend of hers but also because she didn't want me to be left behind in the forest. Which I'm thankful for. I probably would have died already if Mercury hadn't brought me here. It was already cold on that night but now it seemed to be getting even colder. My leaf-dress barely kept me warm enough, therefore I made myself a cape out of some other leaves, lying around in my alcove to have at least something to cover up my bare shoulders.

Now while I was sitting there on the ledge, daydreaming, I didn't notice someone sneaking up on me from behind. Feeling completely clueless I leaned myself back in order to relax a bit more and immediately felt two hands touching my side, causing me to jump up and scream like a frightened guinea pig.

I thought a spider run on my dress but as soon as I calmed down again I spotted Shade, rolling around on the floor, right next to me, laughing like crazy. _That little ..._

Many times I had told him how much I disliked to get scared unexpectedly. Still, he had to do it again. ''Mind telling me what that was for?'' I asked, getting miffed about his silly joke.

''S-sorry,'' he said still laughing. ''B-but that ..wahahaha that was just too good. Hehehe. The sound you made. Hahahaha! I-I have never heard a bat making such kind of noises.''

''Well, just to remind you Shade, I'm not a bat,'' I said, crossing my arms and kept glaring at him until he finally recovered from his laugh attack. I was happy he calmed down quickly because the number of eyes looking at us since my outcry was slowly starting to embarrass me a little.

Finally, Shade stopped and the other Silverwings turned their attention back to other things.

''Oh boy,'' Shade said, rubbing a tear out of his eyes. ''I never thought I would get this kind of reaction from you.'' He started chuckling again but quickly stopped, noticing the expression on my face. ''Alright. I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I promise.''

I sighed. ''Good. But what are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you still be outside and hunt for bugs or something?'' I asked, whereupon he uttered a moan while rolling his eyes in annoyance.

''Great Nocturna, not you too. Why do you and mom insist that I have to eat all the time? Do you want that I roll the long way to Hibernaculum?'' I chuckled softly, picturing this but shook my head.

''Your mother just wants you to build up enough fat reserves for the winter. Who knows how much food we will find on the migration?'' I said.

''Oh, please? I'm sure there's something. Besides, I doubt the journey will be that long. Probably just a few nights into the south.''

''Do you really think your colony would leave this place if Hibernaculum would be just around the corner?'' I asked, raising an eyebrow.

''Hmm no, probably not,'' he said. ''But anyways. I can eat as much as I want. My body just won't build up more fat pads like it already has.''

''Well, maybe you don't catch enough insects?'' I guessed with a shrug, '' or you're eating not enough fat bugs. Just small mosquitos and stuff.''

Shade looked at me indignantly. ''That's not true. Yesterday I just caught a huge bug, almost as big as your head.''

''As if.''

''No, really!''

''Yesterday you said the biggest bug you caught was as big as my hand,'' I said unimpressed while Shade looked away feeling abashed. ''Seriously, please don't start bragging like Chinook.''

''Are you comparing me with him?'' Shade asked frowning.

''What? No,'' I sighed, ''He just gets on my nerves, cause he keeps bragging all the time. I mean, who the hell is interested in how much he eats or how great he can fly?''

''Well, there are some people who do. Like Todd and Breeze for example.''

''Fine, but we aren't them.''

''Right,'' said Shade.

''Whatever, it's more important you get out now, so you'll catch enough to eat,'' I said looking towards the entrance. Shade nodded and swung himself back into the air.

''See you later. Be sure to catch some fat bugs.''

''Thanks. I will!''

''You can tell me about it later then.'' Shade smiled at me friendly and flew over towards the entrance. But then he stopped and turned back to me. ''How about you see it for yourself?'' he suggested.

I looked at him puzzled. ''What do you mean?''

''I'm going to show you how I catch a real bug.''

''Oh. Sure why not. Just bring one here when you get back,'' I said but Shade shook his head.

''That's not what I mean. I want to show you how I hunt. Outside in the forest.''

Nervously I bite down on my underlip ''Shade, you know I'm not supposed to go out until the migration. What if someone sees me?''

''Nah! No one will know. You are just coming with me for a few minutes, hiding behind some leaves. I'll show you how I hunt and then I'll bring you back. Plain and simple. Nobody will notice that you were gone.'' He seemed sure about it but I still wasn't completely convinced. ''I don't know Shade ...''

''Come on, nothing bad is going to happen you will see.'' Thoughtfully I looked over to Shade and straight into his pleading face. ''Shade you know that doesn't work with ...'' He kept looking at me with big round eyes, ears flapped back to his head and a quivering underlip. ''Oh, please not the pouty bat face,'' I said but he didn't stop. ''Urgh. Alright. Fine. I'm coming with you but only for a few minutes!'' Shade nodded smiling with joy and flew straight over to me.

''Short question,'' I said, ''How are you even going to get me outside? I don't think you can carry me on your back Shade.''

''Just hang on to my feet. That will do it.''

With a soft sigh, I jumped up and grabbed Shades feet with my hands and let him carry me outside the entrance without anyone else noticing.

* * *

As soon as we got outside Shade sat me down on the branch of a chestnut tree not too far away from tree-heaven and began to hunt around for bugs. Feeling uneasy about the height I pressed myself back against the trunk and watched Shade hunting around.

I made sure I stayed completely hidden behind the leaf so no one could see me but couldn't help myself to feel nervous the whole time. I was almost ready to ask Shade to bring me back but the Silverwing was more focused on a thick moth, which was appeasing its thirst with the nectar of a purple colored flower.

With a quick flap of the wings, Shade dived at the moth and chased it around the forest and through a hollowed log on the ground. He almost got it when suddenly another Silverwing crossed his path and snatched the moth right before his eyes.

''Hey!'' Shade cried, ''That was mine!''

''Well, too bad,'' the bat returned and I immediately recognized Chinook's supercilious voice.

Chinook was a dark blue bat with bright blue colored hair and mane and considered to be the largest and strongest among the young bats, who were born last spring. Unfortunately, he thought it gave him the right to rub it under everyone's nose. Especially Shade who was the complete opposite.

Compared to Chinook and the other newborns, Shade was much smaller and weaker. Even I was a head bigger than him. The reason for was because of his birth.

One night Ariel explained to me, that Shade was born as one of the oldest pups in this year but two weeks before his actual due date.

He was so tiny no one was even sure if he'd survive at least one night. But thanks to his mother Shade did survive and surprised everyone with his first flying attempts. However, his size didn't change much, unfortunately. Instead of being as big as an adolescents Silverwing should be, he looked more like a child, who just recently managed to fly on his own or like a grown up bumblebee bat.

Nevertheles, this didn't mean Shade couldn't still grow a bit more. He may never reach the designated size of an adult silverwing male but maybe the size of an adult female instead.

Grinning gloatingly Chinook flew back to the chestnut tree, I was still sitting on and roosted on a branch right below me. Glancing down I also noticed two other newborns.

One was a chubby male called Todd with cyan fur and orange hair and Breeze a blonde female with violet colored fur. Both congratulated their idol for his amazing catch while Chinook gulped down the moth with unneeded smacking sounds.

''Coole Technique,'' Breeze praised, ''That tiger moth never saw what hit him.'' She swung her fist into the air to emphasize her words.

''Ha! Neither did Shade.'' Chinook said grinning and all three began to laugh.

I shook my head looking at them in disgust. Even in the animal kingdom existed individuals who just loved to mock others for fun.

Breathlessly Shade flew over, looking hurt and frustrated. ''I could have had him,'' he said, glaring at Chinook.

''Coulda-woulda-shoulda'' Chinook taunted while poking Shade roughly on the chest, causing the smaller Silverwing to lose his balance on the branch to fell down on the one below.

Again they all chuckled, except me and Shade.

''Don't sweat it, runt,'' said Chinook, ''Only the best hunters can see through the moth's echo protection.''

''Echo protection?'' Shade scoffed in reply, ''The word is echo projection and don't call me runt!''

''Really?'' But Chinook didn't seem much interessted in the right pronounciation of the word. Instead he turned his back to Shade, ignoring him while giving his full attention to Todd and Breeze.

''Now, where was I before I was forced to eat yet another tiger moth?''

''If you are afraid to overgorge yourself on the moths why don't you just leave them for others,'' I called down in annoyance, finally having enough of his arrogant behaviour. Too late I realized how I just betrayed myself in this way.

Immediately all the three bats to look up at me in surprise.

''Well look at that,'' Chinook jeered,''The no fur actually came out of the tree.''

''Is she even allowed to do that? I thought she is supposed to stay inside until the migration?'' Todd asked, scratching his head in confusing.

''That's right. Hey! Why are you here?'' Breeze demanded to know.

''Well, I ...''

''I brought her with me,'' Shade said determined before I could even think of what I should say. The others looked at him dumbfounded.

''What? Why?'' Todd asked.

''So she can hear about my father as well,'' Chinook said haughtily. ''That was what I wanted to tell you about. Wasn't it? She probably couldn't wait to hear about him like you guys.''

 _You gotta be kidding me,_ I thought. Not believing my ears. This guy just couldn't be serious with this. Oddly enough it seemed to be the only logical explanation for his friends for why I was here.

Gladly I would have told him how wrong he was but kept my mouth shut. It was better I let him believe what he wanted and listen to his ostentation instead fearing he might rat me and Shade out for breaking the rules. Therefore I had no choice but to climb down to them all.

''My dad is so big, his wings reach from here to ... that tree over there and he can eat thousands of bugs just in one night and he is much faster than anyone in the colony. And one night he fought against an owl and killed it.'' Todd and Breeze looked at him in awe, while I and Shade rolled our eyes.

 _Seriously?_

''No bat can kill an owl. They are too big,'' said Shade, earning a challenging glare from Chinook.

''You calling me a liar, runt?'' he snarled and roughly pushed the smaller bat to his knees.

''Not ... technically.'' opined Shade carefully, while getting back up on his feet. Luckily for him Chinook too his answer as a sign of defeat and spread his wings wide open, pushing the smaller Silverwing back down on purpose. I shook my head watching this, then went over to help Shade back up again. ''My father is huge!'' boasted Chinook. ''You will see him once we get to Hibernaculum. That mea , if your wings can make the migration.'' With a grin Chinook grabed Shades forearm and forced his wing open as if to show how useless they were.

Shade pulled away from his grip and glared at him angrily.

''But then again, why bother if you don't have a dad waiting for you there anyway.''

My eyes widen, knowing that Chinook had just stroke a very sensible nerve.

''Don't talk about my dad like that!'' Shade growled but Chinook didn't even flinch. ''Your dad was bad news,'' he kept mocking him, ''He was a troublemaker and a coward!''

''My dad was not a coward!'' Shade retorted, ''You fruit bat.'' Chinook looked like he was ready to punch Shade for insulting him like that but the sudden sound of birds chirping around caused him to stop in his tracks. ''Sun's coming up,'' Breeze said, ''We gotta go back to tree heaven!''

''Come Chinook. Let's go!'' Todd urged him while I wondered why they were so nervous all of the sudden?

Chinook nodded at his friends before turning back to Shade with a warning glare. ''You better watch your mouth,'' he growled threateningly but Shade didn't even blink. Then he opened his wings wide enough to bump them deliberately against Shade almost knocking him off the tree before following the others.

''Come on you two,'' Breeze called over to us but Shade didn't move. Instead, he let out a simply yawn and made himself comfortable on the branch. ''You guys go,'' he said, ''Vanessa and I will stick around and look at the sun.''

This didn't seem so bad to me but the three Silverwing stopped straight in mid-flight, bumping into each other and imediatelly came back to us with a shocked expression on their faces.

''Look at the sun?'' Chinook asked. Shade nodded, looking at him unblinking. ''You heard me,'' he said

''I heard you, but I don't believe you,'' Chinook scowled.

Breeze was horrified. ''You can't be outside when the sun comes up. The owls will kill you.''

''What?'' I asked puzzled. ''Why?''

''Duh, because it's forbidden?!'' Todd said looking up at him like I should know what he was talking about. Which I didn't.

''Sorry don't get it. What's so bad about seeing the sun?'' Chinook, Todd and Breeze looked at me dumbstruck.

''Did no one told you about the dangers of the sun, Furless?'' Chinook asked. ''It's a giant fireball that will blind you in a split second, melt your skin and burn you to crisps.''

I blinked. ''Ok, I know there are things like sunburns which are pretty bad. But that's pushing it a bit.''

''Oh, what makes you so sure about it?''

''Eh, because I used to walk around in the daylight?!'' I retorted. ''Humans aren't night-active creatures.'' This made Chinook think for a minute. ''Hmpf,...but still...''

''Why don't you just join me to see the truth for yourself?'' Shade suggested. ''Aren't you ... curious?''

The bigger bat hesitated for a second. ''Maybe I am, ... runt.''

''Are you out of your mind? It's against the law,'' reminded us, Todd.

''A stupid law,'' I mumbled, wondering what idiot made it up. Shade nodded.

''Vanessa is right, isn't that so Chinook?'' he asked grinning at him while the birds began to sing louder around us.

''Guys its morning and we should really be inside,'' Todd said fearfully and made his way back to the nursery with Breeze close behind him.

Shade, Chinook and I stood behind and watch those two flying back to tree heaven. Then Chinook cleared his throat and looked back down at Shade. ''So uhm ... what are we gonna do? Hang ... out?''

''I thought maybe we could fly up top. Get a better view.''

''Really?'' Shade nodded and turned over to me. ''Want to come with us?''

''Sure, why not?'' I shrugged. ''Better than to stay here and wait for you guys to return since I'm practically stuck here. Besides, I rarely got to see the sunrise myself.''

''What did you do all time?'' he asked.

''I slept.'' Shade smiled and grabbed my hands with his feet before soaring up to a very tall, leafless tree on top of a hill. There he sat me down on the highest branch and hung himself upside down underneath together with Chinook. The bigger Silverwing stared nervously at the distant glow in the east.

''Well, I guess that's the sun. Now, let's head back.'' Hopefully, he turned to Shade but he just shook his head with a sigh.

''The just the pre-glow,'' he breathed, not leaving his eyes from the horizon.

''Oh, well ehm...,'' Chinook chuckled nervously. ''Why don't we just not see the sun and ... eh ... say we saw it?''

''Why, are you scared?'' I asked.

''What me? Nah. I'm just ... ehm ...'' he gulped, getting more nervous each second. Then he finally couldn't take it anymore and dashed back home as fast as he could.

As soon as he was out of sight, Shade flew up to me on the branch and we both looked at each other triumphally. ''Suits him right.''

''Did you see his face?'' Shade chuckled. ''I thought he would wet his fur any minute.'' We both laughed thinking about this, before glancing back at the horizon.

The distant glow was getting brighter and the dark sky was turning a light pink color. We had to shield our eyes a bit not to get blended from the light.

''Say Shade. Do you really think this is a good idea?'' I asked, slowly feeling nervous myself.

'' Didn't you say the sun is harmless?'' Shade asked.

''Not really. But I'm talking about the owls. Breeze said they will kill anyone who dares to stay out in the day.''

''Yeah, because they made up this nonsense of a law. It is said the first light belongs to the owls and no bat is allowed to go out by day or they will get eaten by them,'' he explained.

''That's stupid.''

''Couldn't agree with you more.''

Together we looked back at the rising sun, when sudden shriek got my attention. _''What was that?''_ I looked over at Shade, wondering if he noticed it too but the Silverwing seemed too stunned from the light. ''Ehm Shade, do you see that?'' I asked, poking his arm to get his attention.

''See what?''

I pointed to the east. ''That thing over there that looks like its coming straight towards us.''

''Nah! You probably just imaginating it Vanessa,'' Shade said, looking into the direction as well, ''There is nothing important just a big angry ... OWL!''

Screaming in fright Shade quickly grabbed my hands with his feet and jumped from the tree, seconds before the white feathered owl could catch us with it's talons. Instantly it dashed back at us for a second attack. Just then another bat rushed in between and stroke the bird's eyes blinding it for a moment. I was shocked to see Mercury flying in front of us. Protecting us from the owl.

''You two, back to tree heaven now"!'' he hissed angrily and without hesitation, Shade flew off with me dangling underneath.

But the owl wasn't done. With another furious shriek, it took up the pursuit and followed us all the way through the forest. ''Faster!'' Mercury urged us and flew up to the front. ''Don't look back!'' But we did.

Behind us the owl was getting closer and closer, while a little piece of the sun had cleared the horizon, spilling dazzling light over the valley.

In order to escape Mercury guided us below the tree line. Other birds were starting to wake up and chirped in surprise when they saw us passing by their nests. I held on tight on Shades feet while he weaved crazily around the foliage. Desperately trying to keep up with the Silverwing scout.

At last, we burst out into the clearing. But so did the owl who had been following us from above the trees. It dropped down on us and Shade and Mercury rolled in different directions to avoid its claws. Then came together again, flying towards tree heaven and plunged straight through the entrance.

Breathing heavily we pushed ourselves further inside and pressed our backs against the wooden wall. The owl tried to get us out by reaching the hole with its claws but it was way too big to fit through. Eventually, it gave up and flew off after circling around the tree with an angry shriek.

Only then we allowed ourselves to breathe again. And I noticed myself trembling from the shock.''

''You both ok?'' Mercury asked. Shade and I nodded, feeling too shocked to say something. Mercury nodded and told us to wait where we stood before flying off. Seconds later we flinched, hearing a pissed off female voice.

''Shade, Cassiel Silverwing!''

We turned around and watched Ariel flying down to us. Her expression a mixture of worry and anger. Without hesitation, she embraced us with her wings.''Thanks, Nocturna you are both safe,'' she whispered in relief before backing away again. ''What were you two doing out there?'' she asked glaring at us sternly. I looked over to Shade as in seeking for help.

''Eh, ... nothing?'' he said, causing his mother to get even angrier.

''Nothing? That owl nearly killed you.'' Ariel cried getting the attention of nearly everyone in the colony.

''W-we got away,'' I said quietly, not liking to be screamed at and backed a little away from her.

''Yeah, thanks to Mercury,'' Ariel retorted. ''If it weren't for him you ...'' She shook her head not wanting to think about it and took a deep breath in order to calm herself down.

''Do you have any idea what you have done? '' she asked, shaking her head in frustration before looking back at her son. ''Oh, Shade. You broke the law!''

* * *

 **AN:** _ **Alright here is part 4. Finally, our story begins where TV series and the original novel start as well.**_

 _ **The reference with Nils Holgerson is actually pretty fitting I think. Like I said in the story. It is a Swedish book about a young boy called Nils Holgerson who lives on a farm with his parents and acts really bratty to everyone. One day he tries bullying an imp and gets shrunken by him as punishment. After that Nils gets bullied by the farm animals for revenge and leaves the farm together with his pet hamster and a domestic goose called Martin. Together they join a flock of wild geese and travel with them through Sweden.**_

 _ **The similarities between this story and mine are:**_

 _ **1) Nils and I get both shrunken through magic (He gets cursed / I accidentally activate a magical pear)**_

 _ **2) Both of us can talk with animals after being shrunk**_

 _ **3) We both travel through a country with animals (He flies with Geese through Sweden / I fly with bats through Canada)**_

 _ **Just as a little information on the site. ;)**_

 _ **Anyways, if you like this story please tell me what you think of it so far. :)**_

 _ **See you next time with chapter 5. Bye :D**_


	5. Echoes of the past

**Chapter 5: Echoes of the past**

* * *

A restless murmur went through the amount of Silverwings roosting above. All of them looked at us with a mixture of fear and anger in their eyes. I gulped nervously and felt slightly relieved to quickly spot Todd and Breeze flying over to a ledge right above us.

''You two are in so much guano. Chinook is gonna be grounded for a week,'' said Todd not without an amused smile on his face.

''Why? He didn't do anything that big mouse,'' said Shade, mumbling the last word. I quickly threw him an unequivocal glare and nodded warningly towards his mother. But she seemed to ignore his insult about Chinook.

''So, did you see it?'' Breeze asked, sounding excited, ''You know...''

''Todd!'' A sharp call prevented us from telling them about our adventure and three adult Silverwing females, the mothers of Breeze, Chinook and Todd landed behind the two young bats on the ledge.  
''Roost!'' the chubby one, called Bala strictly commanded and Todd quickly obeyed his mother's orders and left the spot, followed by Breeze.

''Ariel, this has gone too far!'' Bala criticized. Like the other two, she looked like a spitting image of her child. ''Far too far,'' said Breeze's mother Jaya affirmatively.  
Isis, Chinooks mom flew over to the edge and hung down to our level with a claw pointed directly at Ariel. ''Keep those lawbreakers away from my baby!'' she demanded with a cold glare.

Shade rolled his eyes. ''It's a laugh,'' he muttered smiling.

''Shade!'' Ariel hushed him, ''Roost! Now!'' The young Silverwing lowered his head and did like his mother told him. Then she looked back over to me and crossed her wings before her chest.  
''You too!''

I blinked at her in surprise. ''But Mercury said ... '' Seeing the strict expression in her face, I knew it was useless to try to say anything. Instead, I just nodded shortly and walked over to my sleeping place.  
Arriving there I laid down under the leaves and tried to sleep. Just a few moments later I woke up again, hearing whispering voices not too far away from me.  
I knew it was Shade. He and his mothers roost where very close to my alcove.  
I looked over and saw him gently poking his mother.

''Mom! Hey, are you awake?'' he whispered but got just a short grumbling as a response.  
''Was dad a troublemaker?''

For a moment Ariel stayed silent, then she looked at him over her shoulder. ''Go to sleep!'' she said quietly but Shade didn't seem to be sleepy at all. ''Was he a coward?'' he asked further.  
Ariel sighed and turned her upper body around.

''He was brave and impulsive ... and defiant. Sometimes a little foolish, like you,'' she added with a smile. ''But he was no coward.''

''Did the owls get him?'' Shade asked.

''No one knows for sure. Now try to sleep!''

I kept watching them a little further as they fall asleep, cuddling against each other before going back to bed myself.

* * *

''Hey, Psst! Vanessa!''

''Hmmr ..what's wrong?'' I asked grumpily, not liking to be woken up so early.

''The elders have met, and they want to see both of us...now!'' Shade said, looking down at me with a worried expression. Immediately I got up.

''But I thought only adult bats were allowed to meet the elders?'' I asked confused.

''Yes, and anyone who looks at the sun or goes out even though she was told not to do so!''

I flinched briefly noticing Mercury standing right there, beside Shade, looking at me reproachfully.  
''Now come on!''  
Not wanting to disgruntle him even more than he already was, I quickly rubbed the sleep out of my face and combed my hair with my fingers before walking out to climb onto Mercury's back.  
After this, he lifted off and flew with me to the very top of Tree-heaven, like the very first time after he brought me to the colony.  
Shade and his mother Ariel followed us close behind.

At last, we landed on the same mushroom-like platform like I stood on before and looked up to the four elders on the sill above us.  
With my heart throbbing in my chest I waited nervously for what was going to happen next.  
Then finally after what felt to me like an eternity, Frieda began to speak.

''Shade Silverwing and Vanessa, step forward.'' Still, nervous we both did as we were told.  
''You two have broken the most ancient law of our colony. Do you have an explanation for this?''  
The moonlight dropped down on a silver piece of metal on Frieda's left wrist and I blinked, wondering why I haven't noticed it before. Next to me, Shade looked also in awe at the sparkling band.  
Frieda noticed our expressions and looked at her band for a second before turning back to us. Ignoring it. ''Now?''

''Just youthful exuberance and curiosity.'' Ariel said quickly trying to defend us.'' They only...''

''Curiosity that will be the ruin of this colony,'' Bathsheba interrupted her harshly. ''The owls will want retribution and quite frankly, who can blame them?''

I gulped.

''Silence!'' Frieda hushed her with a glare before turning back to me and Shade.  
''Do you have anything to say for yourself?'' she asked. Ariel frantically shook her head.  
''No, no, they don't. They're just children.''

For a split-second, I felt kinda inclined to object. After all, I just went past my teen years and was definitely not a child anymore. Then again this wasn't exactly the right moment for such kind of discussion. So instead, I kept my mouth shut.  
Shade however, thought differently: ''Yes, I do,'' he said, looking up at the four elders with resolution. ''The law is ... wrong!'' An agitated murmur went through the crowd of Silverwings roosting nearby watching us.  
The elders seemed shocked by his words. Especially Bathsheba.

''What?'' she snarled.

''Shade!'' Ariel breathed.

''Let the boy speak,'' Frieda demanded but Bathsheba didn't listen. She hopped forward, ignoring her leader and glaring angrily down at Shade.

''Listen you insolent upstart! That law guarantees our very existence.''

''Bathsheba!'' Frieda threw a warning glare at her colleague before asking Shade to continue with his explanation.  
Unfortunately, Shade didn't seem to know how to explain himself, so I took the floor instead.

''What's so wrong with bats seeing the sun?'' I asked before I could stop myself. The words just tumbled out of my mouth. Asking a question I had in my mind since the first time I heard about this law. ''I mean, I've heard stories, about bats getting turned into dust or stone and such things. But that's ... I'm sorry ... ridiculous. The sun might have its dangers but it won't burst anyone into flames just like that.''  
Shade nodded eagerly, agreeing with me.

''That's right, the only reason we can't be out in the daylight is because of the owls. It's unfair!''

Frieda raised her wing. ''I've heard enough.''

''Indeed,'' Bathsheba said, ''We have no choice but to hand these lawbreakers over to the owls.''

''What?'' cried Ariel and immediately wrapped her wings protectively around her son. ''No, Frieda, please!'' pleadingly she stared up to the supreme elder.

''And we should do it now before the owls come for him and the girl. Someone probably told the owls about her anyways after seeing her outside, when she was actually supposed to stay inside.'' She glared at me. ''I knew you would just cause trouble to our colony human.''

Anger flared up inside me but I forced myself to stay calm, knowing it won't be worth it to start to argue with her. The other two elders, however, seemed to be unsure about what should happen to us.

''Though I don't like this idea. But for the good for all of us it might be the best if we let the owls handle the situation since they will come to us anyways,'' said Aurora

Lucretia nodded. ''Yes, they will want to know the truth about a human being in our home.''  
Bathsheba grinned triumphantly, thinking she had won this round.  
''Good. Now let us send a message to the owls to tell them that we hand these two over to them.''

''No!''

Bathsheba glared down at the bat who dared to object her decision. To my surprise, it wasn't Ariel again but Mercury instead who had walked up and protectively shielded me with his wings from the glaring eyes of the elder. ''We can't just hand them over just like that. There has to be another way.''  
I blinked in confusion wondering why he was defending me like that? Well, he was defending Shade as well with his words but his wings were only blocking me from the bats above us.

Bathsheba looked like she was about to nag again but Frieda stopped her before she could even make a sound.

''I'll take appropriate actions at the appropriate time,'' she said and flew down to us on the ledge.

''Come with me,'' she said and Shade and I both exchanged a worried glance with each other before looking at Ariel and Mercury for help.  
Ariel kept her wings tight around her son, not wanting to let him go and Mercury also refused to lower his wings.

''Ariel, Mercury. It's for the good of the colony'' Frieda said calmly.  
The Silverwing scout wanted to disagree with her at first but Ariel held him back by putting a hand on his shoulder.  
With a deep sigh, Mercury moved his wings away from me and stepped aside. Scared and confused I watched what he was doing and how Ariel let go of her son. Both with a sad expression in their eyes.

''Shade. Vanessa. Go with Frieda!'' Ariel said.

We were shocked but knew we had no choice but to do as we were told.  
Therefore, Shade lifted himself up from the ground and flew over to me to grab my hands with his feet before following Frieda into the depths of Tree-Heaven  
Behind us, I could still hear Bathsheba talking to Ariel and Mercury.  
''It's not like they are fit enough to make the migration anyway,'' she said.

* * *

Frieda continued leading us down until we reached the mossy bottom of the tree.  
One couldn't imagine how relieved I was to feel solid ground back under my feet.  
The surrounding air was much cooler than in the upper regions and I pulled my leaf-cape closer around my shoulders. The smell of soil and wood was so intensive, even I could smell it without problems.

Curiously Shade and I kept following the supreme elder through a narrow passage behind some kind of wooden door which let us even deeper into the tree until we reached a curtain of dry leaves. Right behind it was a massive cavern with walls so smooth like ice and roots hanging down from the ceiling above and along the walls.  
It seemed we were below the ground and directly under Three-Heaven itself.

''Sit down over there!'' Frieda nodded towards a spiral-shaped root hanging down in the middle of the room and Shade flew over to set me on top of it before roosting underneath with the elder beside him.  
Both of us looked around in surprise and astonishment.

''I don't understand,'' Shade finally said, ''Where are we?''

''This room is called the echo chamber,'' Frieda explained,'' It holds all of our colonies history, sung by silverwings long dead. The walls of the chamber are polished so smoothly they will echo here forever.

 _Wow_ , I thought and kept looking around. The chamber was pretty much dark but from the bottom which looked strangely like some kind of round lake, swirled a mysterious fog upwards and gave the room a ghostly white glow.

''What's that sound?'' Shade suddenly asked and pulled me out of my trance. _Sound?_ I wondered what sound he was talking about and listened more carefully but besides the rustling of wings and my own thoughts in my head I couldn't hear anything.  
Blinking in confusion I looked down to the two bats roosting underneath me.

''You can hear it?'' I heard Frieda asking Shade who kept looking around as if he wasn't so sure of it himself.

''Well, kind of,'' he says, ''It's like ... someones whispering.''

I tried to listen again but all I could hear was the wind, howling faintly through the chamber.  
Could there even be wind so deep down under the ground?

''Someone from hundreds, even thousands of migrations ago.''

''What are they saying?''

Frieda smiled. ''You tell me. Simply concentrate and listen. Not everyone has the gift.''  
Shade did as he was told and closed his eyes shut. His eyebrows wrinkled slightly in frustration as he tried to concentrate. ''I hear so many voices,'' he said.

''Pick one.''

I watched Shade concentrating hard on finding those voices and huffed softly.  
''No idea what you two are talking about but I hear only the wind,'' I said, leaning back with my arms crossed before my chest and hoped I didn't sound too grouchy.  
To my surprise, Frieda looked up at me with a soft smile and shook her head.

''Down here there is no wind, my dear,'' she said, ''It would just confuse the echoes. No. What you hear are the reverberations of echoes sung by bats long ago. Humans like you are normally unable to hear the high-pitched sounds we bats make, but I am sure that you will be able to hear them too. All you need is a bit of practice.'' I looked at her skeptically.  
''Just close your eyes and listen carefully. Do not let your thought interfere, just concentrate.''

I did like she said and closed my eyes, concentrating on all the surrounding sounds, while trying my best not to think of something that could disturb me.  
But for the next few minutes, I kept hearing only the soft breathing sounds of me, Frieda and Shade and the strange whispering in the wind. ... wait a moment? Whispering? At first, I thought I had just imagined it but when I listened more carefully I could hear faint voices talking to me.  
I was surprised and wanted to know who the voices belong to but I also feared I would lose them again if I stopped the connection. After a moment the voices became louder, and I was able to understand them better.

''...this winter...''

''...the owls took revenge...''

''... fifteen newborns died in the nursery...''

''...rebellion crushed after the battle...''

I had no idea what the voices were talking about but it didn't sound well.  
Then I frowned and tried my best to keep hold onto a different voice, thinking it must behold the story Frieda wanted me and Shade to hear.

''Many seasons past, at the dawning of the ages, the world we know was nothing but an empty place.'' It sounded like a young female but her voice soon switched to a more masculine one and visa versa. As if a small group of bats was telling this one story together.  
''There was only Nocturna, the winged spirit, whose wings spanned the entire night sky and were the night sky and contained the stars and the moon and the wind. One by one Nocturna fashioned creatures...

Pictures started to fill my mind. Giving me an impression of how the world must have looked like in prehistorical time. Everything was so strange and wild and it felt like I was really there.

''All creatures existed without order.''

''No one knew, the hunter from the hunted.''

''All creatures struggled for their place in a world with no boundaries or laws.''

The priory peaceful looking images in my head changed into more disturbing ones by showing me scenes of fighting animals all over the place. And I began to wonder what the sources of the fights were?

''Alliances were formed,'' the voices continued, ''and war was weighed between the two great kingdoms. The birds and the beasts.''

Again a battle took place before my eyes. More intense and brutal than the ones before. The only difference: Instead of everyone going against everyone else. The birds were now fighting together against the creatures of the land. It was a pure horrific scenario but with something missing.  
Where were the bats?  
In my mind, I looked around until I eventually spotted a few of them hiding in a cave, safely away from the battle.

''But we bats, being both but neither, refused to join the battle.''

''When the war finally ended, the great treaty was forged.''

So suddenly the fights had started so quickly they ended again and I saw myself in the middle with birds on the one side and beasts on the other side. Close by on the trees hung the bats and the other animals glared and growled at them hatefully.

''Because we refused to take sides. The birds and the beasts banished us. For all eternity to the darkness of the night.''  
The world started to spin around me and engulfed me with pitch blackness. Then I opened my eyes and found myself back in the echo-chamber.

''We were forbidden from ever glimpsing the sun again,'' Frieda said and I knew she must have listened to the story as well.  
Shade was outraged.

''Is that how we got stuck with the law? Urgh, that's so unfair.'' He frowned. ''I hate the owls!''

Frieda shook her head. ''You must learn to rule your anger and not let your anger rule you. Only foolish deeds will come of that.''

''But he's right,'' I said, feeling as angry as Shade. I didn't know what I had expected to see why the bats weren't allowed to see the sun. But this? ''You didn't do anything wrong. In fact, you guys even did the right thing in staying out of the battle.''

Frieda sighted. ''You may be right with that my child,'' she said, ''but for the birds and the beasts, we were traitors and cowards. However, it is said that hundreds of years after the great treaty Nocturna herself spoke to us bats and gave us the greatest gift of all. The great promise.''

I was confused. ''What is the great promise?''

''It is one of the oldest legends here in the echo chamber. It is even unclear if it even really happened. But according to it the goddess Nocturna herself personally gave us the promise to return into the light of the day.''

''And how? Will there be another war?'' Shade asked.

''Maybe. I'm not sure.''

''When? When will that happen?''

Frieda sighed and shook her head. ''Perhaps no more in my lifetime, nor in yours, but that could be different for Vanessa.''

''Huh? Why is that?'' Shade asked blinking and turned over to me.

''Human lifespan a longer than bats,'' Frieda explained to him before I could even think about what to say. ''However, what ever may happens. I believe it will happen much sooner.''

''Why?''

''That's why!'' Frieda moved her wing and showed us the silver band on her forearm.

Shade breathed in awe. ''How did you get it?'' He asked carefully, not leaving his eyes from the silver metal.

''He was given to me by humans when I was still young. Barely older than you Shade,'' Frieda explained, ''Some of us were out in the woods one night. The humans came, caught us, attached the bands on our wrist and released us again. I believe it is a sign. A sign that the great promise is about to come soon. I don't know what role the humans will play in it but I think they've come to help us somehow.''  
Finishing her sentence she looked back up and stared me directly into the eyes with her bright yellows ones as if she was expecting something great from me.  
Slightly embarrassed I looked away, not knowing what to say to her. Luckily Shade interfered again before the silence in the room could get any more awkward.

''Have the humans ever tried to band anyone else?'' he asked curiously.

''Not for a long time,'' Frieda said, turning back to the young Silverwing, ''But two winters ago they came back and banded a few males.

''My dad,'' Shade immediately busted out. Frieda nodded. ''Ariel told you about it, right?'' Shade shook his head.  
''No,'' he mumbled sadly, ''She doesn't talk much about him.''  
Frieda sighed. ''We used to tell our young often about these stories. But over time, most elders decided we should stop. There would be no point in thinking about a promise that might never happen. Bathsheba thinks so as well. She and many others don't wish to shed any more blood than it has already been spilled.''

I gulped, thinking about something. ''Does...ehm...does it have anything to do with a rebellion? I heard a few voices whispering about it a bit earlier.''

''Yes,'' Frieda replied, nodding. ''About fifteen years ago several colonies united to form a rebellion against the owls with dramatical consequences. But even though the bats had no chance against the owls they kept fighting. We kept fighting, I should say.''

''You fought?'' Shade asked, and he and I exchanged a short surprised look.

''I was lucky to get away with my life,'' said Frieda, ''But after that, the elders decide it would be for the best of all of us to stay in the night and forget about a time we said to have the freedom to fly even during the day. Basically, that sounds reasonable, but there are still some bats who can't get off about the idea of the sun and freedom.''

''Why did you show us all this,'' I asked her, feeling confused and knew Shade was probably wondering the same.  
Frieda smiled at us. ''You both are different from other bats or humans I've met. You carry some kind of glow inside you that shouldn't be darkened. I can feel it.''

I didn't quite understand what she was talking about, but before I could ask her any more questions I heard wing beats and looked up to see Mercury fluttering down to us with a serious expression on his face.

''Pardon me, Frieda,'' he said firmly, ''Brutus, supreme commander of the owls, has arrived.''

* * *

 **AN: _Here is the 5 chapter of my story. :) Sorry it took so long. Hope you guys like it anyways._**


	6. Burning Revenge

**Chapter 6: Burning Revenge**

* * *

Frieda quickly ordered Mercury to bring everyone outside and to tell the ones on the hunt to stay close to the tree but in a safe distance.  
I had no idea why she was acting that way but the rock up of this owl leader didn't feel like a good sign.

Soon after all the Silverwings were outside Tree-Heaven and spread out on the surrounding branches and trees in the forest, including Mercury, Shade and I.  
Frieda however, landed beside the other elders down on a gnarled branch of the nursery. In front of them stood a menacing-looking great horned owl. It was a male. Big and muscular with yellowish white and brown feathers and a thick white beard.  
On each of his wings were patterns of three orange stripes that gave his appearance a military look.

''General Brutus, please accept my deepest apologies for keeping you waiting.'' Frieda greeted him formally with a slight bow.

''Where are those two?'' the general asked, his yellow-brown eyes staring sternly down at the Silverwing elder.

''They are over there,'' she said and pointing over to us on the tree.  
Chinook, Breeze and Todd, who stood with us, quickly moved away and flew over to another branch. Giving the owl general a good view on us.  
Brutus kept a straight face but I could see it in his eyes that he was surprised to see a tiny human like me.

''So it really is true,'' I heard him saying thoughtfully to himself before he turned his attention back to the Silverwing leader. ''Bring them both to me, so we can settle this.''  
I gulped hearing him and pressed my body closer to the bark while Ariel came over to wrap her wings protectively over her son. He and I exchanged a short worried look before glancing back ahead.

''No!'' Frieda replied decidedly, causing Brutus to frown at her.''

''Do as I say!'' he ordered.

''I will not.''

''Frieda,'' the owl general unfurled his large wings to make himself look more menacing while trying to reason with her. ''Such a decision jeopardizes the balance of nature,'' he said firmly and I felt like I've just misheard something. Was this guy serious?

''Brutus,'' Frieda spoke up, ''You and I have flow in this forest for far too long. You don't really believe that one young bat and his friend glimpsing the sun will upset the balance of nature, do you? Look into your heart. Please, for old times sake.''

''I will not be manipulated,'' growled the General, ''The past is in the past. Emotions have no place in the execution of the law.''

I raised my eyebrow in confusion wondering what they were talking about but before I could ask Shade about it Bathsheba interfered, agreeing with the general.

''My point exactly. The owls were well within their...''

''General Brutus,'' Frieda quickly interrupted the shorter bat, ignoring the angry look on her face.  
''With all your respect as head of this colony, I stand firm on this. No Silverwings or other creature will be sacrificed for the sake of your unjust law.''

''UNJUST LAW?'' Brutus was outraged, his neck feathers bristled in anger. With one strong flap of his wings, he flew down to the branch where the elders stood and stared directly down into Frieda's eyes. ''Give us the boy and the human!''

''No,'' Frieda replied without batting an eye while the other elders quickly fled in fear.  
''I have spoken,'' she said with her hand clenched into a fist.  
Brutus smiled but it wasn't a friendly smile, more of a vicious one. ''Very well,'' he said and flew back up into the air. ''Prepare to suffer the consequences!''

With a very disquieting feeling in my guts, I watched the owl general flying back to the treetops while the Silverwings began chattering nervously, wondering what Brutus had meant.  
Suddenly I heard Bathsheba gasping in fright and looked up to see at least forty owls, in arrow formation flying and with burning sticks and branches in their claws.  
What in the world? To my horror the owls dropped their cargo straight down on Tree-Heaven like aircraft bombs, causing the old tree to be caught up in flames immediately.  
The surrounding bats took off in panic and fled deeper into the forest. Only a handful of them was brave enough to dash towards the fire in hope to save their summer home.

With leaves and their own wings, they tried their best to extinguish the flames but it was too much.  
To make matters worse, the owls were still there as well. With no effort, they simply pushed away each bat who dared to go near the burning tree. And one of them even dug a hole into the bark to push his stick inside in order to cause the tree burn from the inside as well.

The sight was horrible. The flames, the heat and not to forget the dreadful screams of the bats and the guttural laugh of the owls.  
Before anyone could stop me I climbed down the branch as fast as I could and hurried over to the burning tree. I was not even close enough when the smoke engulfed me already, causing me to cough heavily and making it hard for me to see through it and the tears in my eyes.  
But I kept walking. I had to do something. There was no way I would just sit back and watch Tree-Heaven burn down. It was their home. The Silverwings invited me there and took me in as one of their own. It was practically my duty to at least try to help them. The only question was how?  
The smoke was too heavy and the heat too intense to get any further. Nevertheless, didn't I even know which way to go. I just kept going.

There! A flickering right in front of me. Probably one of the smaller flames. Without thinking, I dashed over to it, wanting to put it out and immediately yanked back with a gasp feeling something holding me back by my leaf-cape. I quickly turned around, thinking it was one of those blasted owls but to my surprise, I saw Mercury grabbing my cape with a sorrowful expression on his face.

''Stop it Vanessa it's no use,'' he said calmly, ''The fire is too big.''

''Just watch me!'' I ripped my cape out of his hands, tearing it a bit and used it to suffocate the flames but like he had said. It was too strong. My leave-cape was burned away before I could even put the flames halfway out. Though that didn't matter to me. I would just use something else even if that meant using my own dress in order to save the tree. But before I could do anything I sensed Mercury's hand own my arm and felt him pulling me away with soft power.  
I struggled heavily in his grasps, but he simply ignored my protests and continued to drag me away as far as possible. Then he took flight into the safety of the forest with me dangling under his feet.  
The rest of the Silverwings did the same. Encouraged by the loud voice of Frieda.

''Silverwings retread! We must all retread now!''

I couldn't see where she was and just assumed she was safely away from the fire as well and just grabbed on tightly on Mercury's feet until we reached another tree, far enough from the fire and landed down on a branch. After this, he quickly examined me to see if I was ok and not hurt, then told me to wait there and flew off to check on the others.  
I only listened to him half-heartedly and watched with horror the inferno before my eyes, not noticing how Shade and his mother landed next to me on the branch.

''Vanessa! Thank's Nocturna, you are alright.'' Ariel quickly wrapped her wings around me and hugged me tightly. ''Is everything ok? Are you hurt?'' she asked worriedly but I shook my head.  
Sighting in relief Ariel let go of me and turned back to the conflagration.  
Together with Shade, we watch the unstoppable destruction of Tree-Heaven. The fire was so intense not even rain could save it now. With a loud crack, one of the burning branches broke off and fell into the lake.

A few branches above us Brutus chuckled with glee for what he and his owls had done and triumphantly raised his wings up high. ''Justice has been served,'' he called out with rejoice, then withdrew with his people.

 _What a bastard,_ I thought, glaring at him and wished I could do something to make him pay.

A few minutes later, the three was burned down to its roots and a strangely looking column of smoke rose out from the flame together with a wave of ghostly voices whispering through the air.

''W-what's that strange smoke coming out of the fire?'' Breeze asked, watching it in fright.

''The echoes of our history have been lost,'' Frieda explained, ''but history is kept in memory as well. As long as Silverwings fly our heritage will never be lost.''

Next to me, Shade let out a deep sigh. ''What now?'' he asked his mother, but Ariel just shook her head ''I'm not sure,'' she admitted.

''We would still have a home if we handed those troublemakers over to the owls,'' Bathsheba complained while looking at Frieda with her wings crossed.

''Finding a new home is easier than replacing a child and Vanessa did nothing wrong,'' Frieda replied and flew over to higher branch to get the attention of the whole colony.  
''Since our home has been destroyed, we must begin our migration to Hibernaculum early,'' she said causing the Silverwings to chatter worriedly.

''Unbelievable,'' Bathsheba called out with disgust and fluttered over to another branch, even higher than Frieda. ''Sacrificing our summer roost for a human and a scrawny bat too small to make the migration anyway,'' she said and glared excoriated down on Shade and me.

''Too small?'' Shade growled glaring back then looked around, hearing the other Silverwings whispering. Looking around as well I noticed how many of them backed away and how the mothers wrapped their wings protectively around their children as if we could hurt them just by looking.  
Even Chinook threw a cold glance at us before turning away. I couldn't help but glared back knowing everything was his fault too

Then I looked back up again and saw Mercury landing beside Frieda on the branch.  
''Dawn is coming soon. We have to start moving,'' he said insistently.

''Silverwings,'' Frieda cried out to the colony, ''We must ready our children for the long journey ahead.''  
Shade took a deep breath then looked at his mother resolutely. ''I can make it,'' he said.

''Of course you can. Shade, I have to sing our migration sound map to you now. You need to know the way to our winter roost,'' she said.

His eyes widen. ''The whole thing?''

''There is no time to sing it to you in stages like we usually do.''

Shade sighted. ''Ok.''

''Close your eyes and listen well.''  
I watched Ariel singing the sound map to her son just like the other mothers and began to ask myself what would happen now. The wind increased and I started to shiver a bit but I tried to ignore the cold. Looking back at Shade at seemed for a moment he had lost his balance on the branch, but he luckily caught himself and flew back on top of it, shaking his head.

''Did you get all of it Shade?'' Ariel asked worriedly. Shade looked somewhat uncertain at first but then nodded. ''I... uh... I think so.''

At the time all pups were ready for the flight, the autumn wind increased even more and caused my hair and various leaves to dance through the air.  
At the top of her branch, Frieda spread out her wings and flew off to start the journey and one by one each of the Silverwings began to follow her.  
I kinda felt a bit nervous knowing we were now starting this long flight and I could see it in Shades eyes that he was probably thinking about the same.

As almost everyone else was up in the air Mercury flew over to us and called out to Ariel and Shade to hurry up, while I was told to climb back up on his back.

''Ready?'' I asked Shade, smiling slightly after I got on Mercury's back.

''Ready,'' he replied and took flight together with Ariel, Mercury and the rest of the Silverwings.

* * *

 **AN: _Thank you guys for the nice reviews. I'm glad you like the story so far and I'm sorry it took so long but here is the next chapter for you. ^w^_**

 ** _Feel free to tell me what you think about it but no mean comments alright?!_**

 ** _Anyways, see ya on chapter 7 ;)_**


	7. Bad Dreams

**Chapter 7: Bad Dreams**

* * *

Right before sunrise the silverwings and I sought shelter in the attic of an old barn.  
Feeling exhausted from the long flight, the bats quickly fell asleep, hanging upside down from the ceiling joists with their wings wrapped around their bodies like cozy blankets.

I also laid down and made myself as comfortable as possible on the straw which wasn't so easy.  
The stems were just too prickly and not as soft as the grass and leaves I used to sleep on before in Tree-Heaven but it was better than nothing.  
Digging myself in with a yawn I watched some mothers snuggling their pups into their wings. Then I fell asleep but the events of what happened still hunted me in my dreams.

* * *

 _With a soft yawn, I woke up and wondered why it was so quiet to me. According to the lack of light, I assumed it must be nighttime already so why didn't I hear bats chattering like usual?_  
 _Did they all go out hunting together?_

 _I climbed out of my alcove just to find myself all alone in Tree-Heaven._  
 _''They didn't go on their migration without me or did they?'' A slight panic overcame me but I took a few breaths to calm myself down._  
 _No, they wouldn't do that to me. Frieda said we would meet someone on the journey who might be able to help me get back to my bigger self. I doubt she was lying about that._

 _Still confused about the missing Silverwings I walked around trying to find someone but the whole oak seemed completely abandoned._

 _''Hello! Anybody here?'' I called out. No answer. ''Hm, maybe I should check if I can find someone outside.'' I looked at the entrance but hesitated for a moment, knowing I wasn't allowed to go out so other animals won't see me. On the other hand, I needed to know what was going on, therefore I pulled myself together and walked towards the hole the_ Silvewings _use as their front door._

 _''Just a little peak. That should be ok.'' I crawled outside and looked around. Besides the surrounding forest, there was not much to see in the dark. Also, it was pretty quiet._  
 _Too quiet for my taste. There were no insects whizzing around and no wind that rustled through the leaves. Everything was just dead silent._

 _Again I felt a shiver going through my spine. This was just too creepy. What was going on?_  
 _I walked a bit further away from the nursery and through the high grass._  
 _Suddenly I froze hearing wings flapping out of nowhere. Looking up I saw Shade floating above me and I sighed in relief._

 _''Geez, Shade don't do that. You nearly gave me a heart attack here. Can you please tell me what's going on and ...?'' I broke off noticing the appalled look on his face. ''Uh, Shade? What is...?''_

 _''Vanessa what-what have we done?'' he breathed starring with fear at something right behind me._

 _''What are you talking about Shade? What did we do?'' Instead of answering Shade just shook his head, still staring past me with tears shining in his eyes. Slowly I began to worry about what was going on but before I could ask more about it I started to smell something burning and heard some cracking behind me. Confused about it I turned around and gasped seeing Tree-Heaven blazing in flames._

 _''What in the world?!'' Only now I began to feel the heat. An unbearable warmth engulfing me along with thick smoke that burned into my lungs and brought tears to my eyes._

 _''Why? ... How? ''I asked and coughed violently because of the smoke while watching the ancient oak getting devoured by fire. ''We ... we have to do something!'' I turned around seeking for help._  
 _''Quick! We need to fetch water! We have to extinguish the flames!''_

 _''We can't extinguish it. The fire is already too big.''_

 _Stunned I looked up and saw Mercury hovering above me with a surprisingly calm expression on his face._

 _''He's right. There is nothing we can do,'' said Ariel who appeared beside him._

 _''But...we can't let Tree-Heaven burn down!''_

 _''Are you deaf human?'' came Bathsheba's harsh voice right next to me. ''The tree is lost. Thanks to you and that troublemaker Shade!''_

 _''What? No, that's not true!'' I protested but the elder just kept glaring at me hatefully._

 _''Frieda should have never allowed you to stay with us. Now, look what you have done!''_

 _Again I tried reasoning with her. ''That isn't our fault. It's the owls. They burned the tree.''_

 _''Just because you two saw the sun.''_

 _''Why did you do that? You knew it was forbidden,'' Ariel asked me with disappointment while Mercury just shook his head, looking at me. ''I should have never brought you to our colony,'' he said._

 _''But ...'' Desperately I looked around searching for support but all I saw were bats whose faces appeared as images in the blazing flames all around me._

 _'''You shouldn't be here!'' they said._

 _''Why did you come here?''_

 _''You humans are all the same. No one can trust you!''_

 _''Thanks to you we have no home anymore!''_

 _''No, please, listen! That's not true. It's the owl's fault! Not Shade's! Not mine!'' Tears burned in my eyes and I clenched my teeth together not to cry. I held my ears and tried to block out the angry voices but it was too much and they seemed to go straight through my mind._  
 _They surrounded me in a sinister circle and began pushing me further towards the flames._

 _''Stop it! Please!'' But the voices did not cease. They just got louder and angrier and pushed me further and further. Then I stumbled backward and fell straight into the fire screaming in fright.''_

* * *

''Vanessa, Wake up!''

With a gasp I opened my eyes, feeling someone shaking me violently by the shoulders. I turned around and saw Mercury looking at me with concern.

''Are you alright?'' he asked worriedly.

I took a few breaths to calm myself down from the dream I just had and nodded slowly.  
''Y-yes ... I'm fine.''

''You sure? I saw you tossing around in your sleep and then heard you screaming.''

''Oh,'' I said, feeling slightly embarrassed and looked around hoping I didn't wake anybody else up by it.

''Don't worry your scream wasn't that loud. I probably wouldn't even have heard it at all if I didn't fly over to you,'' Mercury said, noticing me glancing around nervously.  
He couldn't fool me. I knew bat ears a very sensitive. For sure someone must have heard me beside him but it seemed they were all either too tired or just didn't care about it. Still, it was nice of him to soothe me like this.

''Now, what happened?'' Mercury asked, ''Did you have a nightmare or something?''

''Well, ...'' I thought about it. Normally I quickly forgot most of what happens in my dreams but this time every detail was stuck in my head as if it all happened for real and not just parts of it.

''Do you want to talk about it?'' he asked cautiously. I didn't even notice him sitting down next to me on the straw. Blinking away some tears I shook my head. ''You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I could also get Ariel or Frieda for you if prefer talking to them instead.'' Again I shook my head.

''No, thank you. I'm fine. I just need to be alone for a moment,'' I said quietly, not looking at him. Mercury frowned obviously not believing me that I was ok. ''Please!'' I asked him forcefully whereupon he briefly nodded before flying back up to his roost.

As soon as he was gone I rolled myself back into the straw. For a while, I just laid there staring into nothingness still thinking about my dream and more. Silent tears streamed over my eyes and I clenched my teeth together in order to stop me from sobbing too loud.  
Finally, I got too tired to stay awake any longer and fell back to sleep, not knowing that Mercury  
was watching me from his roost the whole time.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Early the next night, the Silverwings continued their journey towards stonehold in order to meet there with the adult males of the colony, before then migrating with them together to Hibernaculum.

As one of the strongest fliers, Chinook flew close to the top where the elders were.  
However, instead of being excited that it wasn't long until he would finally meet his father for the first time in his life, his thoughts went far away.  
He just flapped his wings up and down with no care what's going on around him. Therefore he didn't seem to notice Todd caught up with him with a frown on his face.

''Nice going chickenwing,'' the chubby one said mockingly, causing Chinook to glare at him with his neck fur standing up in annoyance.

''What do you mean?'' he demanded to know.

''Well, this is as much your fault as it is Shade or Vanessa's,'' said Todd.

''What?''

''If you hadn't taken up Shade on that stupid dare this wouldn't have happened.''

''I'll show you who's a chicken, '' Chinook snarled, feeling exasperated about Todd's assertion and tried to tackle him in midair but the other bat easily dodged his attack.

''Chinook, just remember. I know what you did.''

The dark blue male threw his friend another glare before turning away, his expression changing into guilt.

* * *

Meanwhile, a few thousand wing beats away from the silverwings, a small maple leaf floated through the wind towards a city close to the forest. Like in all big cities, the streets showed brightly thanks to numerous lanterns and shining signs, while cars honked and sirens howled.

Undeterred, the leaf kept floating around through the wind until it came across a building where it got sucked into the ventilation shaft and into the interior of the building. Again, the maple leaf swirled around until it finally landed on the grassy ground in the midst of an artificial jungle.  
Behind a wall of glass stood a desk with scientific utensils such as test tubes with different kinds of chemicals inside and other things.  
There was light in the room but not a signal person to see.

Suddenly footsteps approached the leaf and a shadow hovered above it.  
After a short consideration, the leaf got picked up by a sharp claw. A pair of sly yellow eyes studied it a bit more closely before looking up to ventilation shaft it had come from.  
A satisfying grin appeared on his face as lightning flashed behind the large glass window on the roof, followed by thunder. Finally, the time had come. Tonight, he would be free.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

''Meh,'' I said disgruntled while laying down on Ariel's back, trying to make myself as small as possible, but I was already soaking wet from the heavy rain. The storm had caught us without warning and the strong wind made it hard for everyone to keep on course.

''Are you doing alright dear?'' Ariel asked me over her shoulder and I nodded, my eyes squeezed shut due to the rain. Since our departure from the barn, she kept asking me if I was fine from time to time. It was nice but also a little annoying and I wondered if Mercury might have told her anything about me having a bad dream yesterday.

''Don't worry we will be out of the storm in no time. You will see.''

I nodded again and wished I had an umbrella or something with me and were back on the ground instead hundreds of miles up in the air. _I'll just close my eyes and snooze a little._ I thought and tried not to think too much of the height but then wind increased and I dug my fingers deeper into Ariel's fur not wanting to fall off.

''Heavy gusts!'' I heard Frieda calling from the top as the wind blew stronger, ''Keep in tight formation!'' At her command, the silverwings flew closer together while I kept a hold on Ariel as tight as I could. Luckily she was a strong flier and therefore had no big problems with my extra weight on her back though she did start panting a little from the effort.

Shade, however, seemed to have more problems keeping up with the storm. Looking back I noticed him desperately flapping his short wings to keep up with the bats up front but the wind pushed him further away towards the end of the colony.

''Come on, I know you can do it runt,'' Chinook said to him in a strangely encouraging tone before flying ahead. Shade tried to fly faster but without success.

''You are lagging too far behind. Hang on to your mother boy!'' cried Bathsheba, who supervised the rear end as she flew past him with a disapproving shake of her head.  
Again Shade tried to force his wings to carry him faster but to his chagrin, it didn't work. Even the older and weaker bats in the colony passed him already.

Lightning flashed and Shade got thrown further away. Seeing this I quickly reported it to Ariel who turned around with a gasp and immediately flew over to her son's side.

''Cling to me Shade!'' she cried out to him through the rain and glided under him but the young Silverwing just shook his head.

''No,'' he said determined while flapped his wings even harder now,'' I'm fine. Besides, you are already caring Vanessa.''

''So? You need a break. Someone else can carry me for a while,'' I called to him, feeling slightly annoyed because of his childish behavior. This wasn't the time or place to try proving that he's not a weakling.

''Seriously, I'm fine. I can handle it,'' he repeated panting and threw a brief irritated glance at me.

I snorted in annoyance and squinted my eyes because of the fierce wind and the rain.  
''Now, come on Shade. Don't be such a baby and get over here!'' Forgetting my high anxiety for a moment I got up to my knees on Ariel's back and reached over to grab Shade by his feet in order to pull him down on his mother. At that moment, another lightning struck down, this time straight through the middle of the colony, scattering them apart.  
Thanks to the turbulence I lost my balance on Ariel's back and fell off, accidentally pulling Shade with me into the depths whose feet I managed to get hold of.

''SHADE! VANESSA!'' Ariel cried out in horror.

Mercury heard her and immediately flew over to help. Without hesitation, he passed the other silverwings as fast as he could, fear written on his face. He stretched out his hand in an attempt to save us and for a moment he managed to get a hold on a part of my leaf dress but it ripped off as he tried to pull me and Shade back up.

''AHHH! MERCURY, ARIEL! HELP!'' Shade and I cried out in panic as we helplessly plunged down through the clouds.

* * *

 **AN: _Hello everyone and Happy New Year :D I know it's been a while since my last update but two months isn't that much or is it?! However, I hope you like this chapter. Feel free to tell me what you think. ^w^_**

 ** _See you on chapter 8 :3_**


	8. Castaway

**Chapter 8: Castaway**

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

"NO!" Ariel cried out in horror and hurried to save her son and their human friend. Desperately she tried to reach at least one of them but the wind kept forcing her back without mercy.  
Eventually, she had to give up and helplessly watched the outlines of Shade and Vanessa getting smaller and smaller until they completely disappeared in the clouds.

On her right, Mercury was just as shocked as she was. Also starring down at the clouds underneath them, the piece that ripped off from Vanessa's dress still in his claws.  
For a moment they were both too shocked to say anything until Mercury managed to pull himself together and dashed towards the front to inform Frieda about what happened.  
Ariel, however, just kept looking down, not wanting to believe she may have lost her only son right before her eyes.  
With all her heart she prayed to Nocturna that Shade and Vanessa were going to be alright.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Seagulls.  
That was the first I heard as I finally gained consciousness again. Seagulls and the sound of waves close to, ... wherever I was.  
Opening my eyes I realized that I somehow managed to tangle myself up in a bunch of seaweed lying on an unfamiliar shore. I creaked out of it and took a look at my surroundings when I noticed some rustling. First I thought it was a crab or some kind of other sea creature but it then  
I realized that it was just Shade whose blue colored head peaked out from the seaweed right next to me.  
Coughing he struggled to get out of it then spotted me to his right.

''Vanessa! Oh, man I'm so glad to see you. Are you alright?'' he asked, his eyes shining with relief.

''I'm fine. Just a few scratches,'' I said while checking myself for any wounds. Besides a few bruises there seemed to be nothing serious. ''The seaweed probably caught us.''

''That and the wind. Did you also feel like it was holding you a little.''

I nodded. ''Yes, it felt like something was slowing down our fall,'' I said, remembering how it felt like the wind was trying to decelerate our fall before losing my consciousness out of shock and fear.

''Say, do you have any ideas where we are?'' Shade asked, looking around with a frown.

''No,'' I replied, checking our surroundings as well. ''But it seems we stranded on some kind of coast but I can't tell you ... Hold on! Did you hear that?'' A sudden clacking caught my attention as I turned my head around. Suddenly a red colored crab popped its head up from behind a small hill straight before us, followed by two more crabs.  
''Oh — oh!'' I said watching the crabs quickly crawling over to us, clattering their pincers.  
They didn't look very pleased to see us.

''Uh... What are those?'' Shade asked, nervously while watching the crustaceans coming closer.

''Crabs!'' I said ''But I don't think they are happy to see us Shade.''

''Why? We haven't done anything to ... Hey!''

He flinched back as one of the crabs snipped its pincers close to his ear, missing him only by an inch. Another one tried grabbing my arm but luckily just cut the seaweed instead.  
Shade and I moved around, trying our best to avoid the sharp pincers but also let them cut us free from the tang.

As soon as we were free, Shade jumped into the air and grabbed my hands with his feet before flying off into the forest and away from the angry crabs. Their threatening clattering dying away, the further we got away from the shore.

Confused and disoriented Shade fluttered through this unfamiliar forest while we both looked around hoping to see one of the silverwings or at least some other bat who could help us.  
But all we encountered was a pair of creepy red eyes in the leafage and some angry growling in a seemingly abandoned treehole.  
Still, we kept looking around, not wanting to give up just yet but eventually Shade needed a break, and so he landed us on the branch of a tree whose leaves were all colorful red, orange or yellow.

''Are you sure they are around here somewhere?'' I asked, feeling unsure.

''Of course. They wouldn't just leave us behind,'' Shade replied as if it was the most obvious in the world but I could also hear a bit of uncertainty in his voice.  
I felt bad thinking it was probably my fault we ended up in this situation. If I hadn't tried to force Shade to cling to his mom by pulling him down by his foot, I wouldn't have lost my balance on Ariel's back and we would still be with the colony. But at least Shade wasn't blaming me for it. At least not now.

Shade sighed and scanned the area again. ''You really don't see or hear anyone?'' he asked with a hint of hope in his voice but I shook my head.

''No Shade,'' I replied mirthlessly, causing him to sigh again.

''Great and what are we going to do here now?'' he asked when an unexpected voice suddenly spoke right behind us.

''That's something I could ask you two just as well.''  
With a gasp Shade and I, both turned around expecting to see the owner of the voice but instead we saw only a wall of colorful leaves. Then again something seemed strange.  
One of the leaves, a bright orange one, looked much thicker than the others but before I could investigate it more closely it suddenly moved.  
To our surprise the leaf unfolded two leathery wings, revealing the head and body of a female bat.  
She was young but apparently a bit older than Shade due to her more mature features. Her beige colored fur and a dark brown mane with orange colored wings and ash-blond hair reminded me of the fall. Also, did it perfectly camouflage her among the other leaves.

''I asked you two a question,'' she repeated glaring at us with her dazzling green eyes.

Shade couldn't stop staring at her. ''You are a bat!'' he blurted out in astonishment causing the female to roll her eyes at him in annoyance.  
''You are a genius. Of course, I'm a bat,'' she replied cocky and jumped down to us on the branch. Staring at us distrustfully she crossed her wings before her chest wrinkled her nose a bit at my sight as if she saw a disgusting bug before quickly looking away with a huff.  
Raising my eyebrow I wonder what her problem was but kept my mouth shut while she observed Shade from head to toe.

''Gee, you are like a bat,'' she said thoughtfully, ''only smaller.''

''Who are you?'' Shade asked.

''Not so fast. I ask the questions around here. So, who are you?'' she demanded to know, refusing to tell us her own name first.

''I'm Shade and this is Vanessa,'' Shade replied, pointing to himself and at me.

''And what do you think you are doing on my island?''

''We got separated from our colony,'' Shade explained and raised his eyebrow in confusion while studying her appearance a bit more. ''What's wrong with your fur?'' he asked pointing towards her bright colored belly.

''Wrong?'' The female blinked in confusion and looked down on herself. ''What do you mean? There is nothing wrong with my fur,'' she said huffy and placed her hands on her hips, looking rather insulted.

'Eh, it's all ... light,'' Shade said not understanding what he could have said wrong.

The female chuckled in amusement, noticing his confusion. ''Small and clueless,'' she said rolling her eyes at his naivety. ''I'm a brightwing, of course!''

''I didn't know there were other kinds of bats,'' Shade admitted and glanced over at me with astonishment written on his face before looking back to the brightwing female.

''Where have you been living? Under a rock?'' she asked chuckling softly.

''No! In a tree,'' Shade muttered, turning his eyes away.

''So, how did you get separated from your colony? Did they ... uhm ... banish you?'' she asked, looking a little more sympathetically at Shade, who stared back at her in shock.  
''Oh, what? No! I ... I mean, we were blown off course,'' he replied.

''Really?'' she grinned at him, seemingly not believing his words, ''Sure your wings weren't just big enough to keep you on course?'' she asked mockingly and raised up her own set of wings to demonstrate their big size with were far larger than his.

''I don't need this,'' Shade growled and flew up to grab my hands with his feet. ''Come on Vanessa, let's get outta here.''  
I nodded, wanting away from here as well. With her bitchy attitude, this female reminded me too much of Chinook.  
However, we didn't get far when the brightwing stopped us by fluttering right in front of us.

''Hey, where do you think you are going?'' she asked.

''Preferably somewhere you aren't,'' I said glaring at her, but she simply ignored me and spoke to Shade instead.

''You do realize that the sun is coming up? In your case, I wouldn't waste time by flying around as if I don't know where I'm going but search for a hideout instead.''

''Uh ... sure. That's just where we were off to anyways,'' Shade replied, but she could hear the uncertainty in his voice.

''You know what. I'll be so kind and let you spend the day at my place. Just follow me it's not far.''

''Don't do us any favors,'' Shade muttered not wanting to fly after her.

''Shade, maybe it's better we go with her, the horizon is brightening up already, '' I said looking east, noticing the sky lightening up a little while hearing birds chirping around.

''You should listen to your friend here little one. Oh, and by the way ... my name is Marina.''  
And with that she flew off into the forest, leaving us no choice but to follow her.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

At the same time back at the artificial jungle, the shadow who studied the small leave earlier flew up to the air vent high on the wall. With just one of his razor sharp claws he peeled the concrete around the grid as if it was as soft as butter and then he used both of his hands to pull the grid out of its place with amazing strength and let it crash down on the floor together with some crumbs of concrete.  
With sinister laugh he vanished through the shaft and into his freedom, accompanied by another one.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

The next evening I woke up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes and checked my surroundings.

Yesterday Marina brought us to her roost, an abandoned fishing hut which was mostly empty aside from a bundle of fishing nets and a few old and dirty sails and blankets lying around together with some pots. A few of them broken.

Looking around I noticed our acquaintance be missing because besides me there was only Shade roosting upside down from a robe above me, sleeping the sleep of the just.  
Feeling a bit hungry I decided to find myself some food and quietly got up from my makeshift bed made out of leaves and remnants not wanting to wake up Shade.

A cold wind blew through the cracks in the roof, sending a shiver through my body.  
I was still wearing nothing but those leaves I provisionally wrapped around my body after I found myself shrunk. But after all, what happened this thing really needed a makeover. It was practically nothing more but a piece of shreds. Still, I was lucky that it at least kept my private parts hidden.

Nevertheless, I needed something new to wear. That was for sure but what could I use?  
Without the required materials there was no way I could at least try sewing myself a new dress out of the remains of my bed.  
No, I needed something else, preferably some clothes ready to wear. Unfortunately, there seemed to be nothing like this lying around until I spotted something behind two pots.  
It was a doll. A little tattered and dirty but apart from that it looked just fine, wearing a sand colored, long-sleeved native American styled top plus skirt and dark brown moccasin boots.

''This could come in handy,'' I mumbled to myself, contemplating the doll and began changing my ragged leaf clothes with theirs with fit me surprisingly perfectly. With a smile I turned my body around, feeling happy to have normal clothes on again, though a skirt might be not the warmest thing to wear in a place like Canada close to winter.  
Luckily the doll wore also a fluffy white hooded cloak which was thick enough to keep me warm from the cold wind.

As soon as I finished putting my new clothes on I heard wing beats coming from a crack in the roof and looked up to see Marina flying back in.

''Oh, I see you are awake,'' she said, though she didn't sound too happy about it. With an appraising look, Marina eyed my new outfit. Obviously unimpressed.  
''I see you put some fresh leaves on or whatever that is your kind is wearing,'' she said emphasizing the phrase ''your kind'' as if it was something unpleasant, but before I could say anything I noticed Shade waking up from his nap.

''Evening,'' he greeted us with a yawn while rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

''Hey there sleepy head,'' Marina said looking much friendlier at him than at me earlier. ''Now that you are awake I can finally show you around the island, just so you know where my territory is,'' she said and flew out before either Shade or I could say anything against it.  
We just exchanged a short look and shrugged before following her outside.

* * *

Moments later we were flying alongside the cost next to Marina while listening to her speech about where her territory starts and ends.

''From the barnacle covered rocks to the old cider tree that's mine,'' she explained, ''And from the waterfall to the north cove, that's mine.''

Shade seemed impressed. ''You have this whole place to yourself?'' he asked her with awe.

''Pretty much.''

''Wow. We are totally surrounded by water,'' he said, his eyes gazing our surroundings as we flew along the coast.  
''Duh, that's what an island is,'' Marina said rolling her eyes at Shade's lack of knowledge about such stuff.

''Say, are more bats on this island besides you?'' I asked knowing that northern bats usually don't live alone by themselves.

''Nope, the island is pretty much empty for that matter, but they are lots of other animals to keep company.''

''For how long have you been here?'' Shade asked.

''Since last spring. I was pretty much lucky to find this place. It practically saved my life after it got destroyed by certain creatures,'' Marina said while throwing a short icy glance at which made me wonder once more what she had against me when I didn't even do anything wrong to her.  
But before I could ask her more we heard the sound of whales close to us.

Looking down I gasped with astonishment watching three giant black-white orcas swimming through the sea.

''What are those?'' Shade asked after spotting the whales.

''Those are orcas,'' I explained happily, then looked back ahead to see Marina diving to the whales with a joyful laugh. Not wanting to miss any fun Shade followed her quickly towards one of the orca's heads, carefully passing the air and water fountains blown from their blowholes.

''Can't handle the pace kid?'' Marina asked grinning, noticing Shade lacking behind a little, panting heavily.

''Huh, what?'' Shade said with a chuckle, bestirred not to show her how exhausted he was, ''I'm just eh ... getting my barrings.''

Marina shook her head not falling for it. ''Look,''she said,''You are obviously too small to make it back to the mainland especially while carrying the furless all the time never mind catching up with your colony so...''

''I don't care! We are not going back.''

I quickly looked up feeling confused about his outburst. ''What...?''

''You can hang with me ... Wait!'' Marina's happy expression changed to concern after realizing what he just said. ''You don't care?'' she asked looking at him puzzled, ''What's that about?''

''I broke the law, I looked at the sun.'' Marina gasped in horror and stared at us for a second before following us to the woods and down to a branch.

''You looked at the sun?'' she asked looking at Shade then laughed a little as if she doesn't believe it, ''You are pulling my wing.''

I shook my head. ''No he really did ... we did I should better say but the owls found out and destroyed Tree-Heaven.''

Shade nodded with a sigh and lowered his eyes in shame. ''And it's all my fault. The colony is better off without me.'' I tried to say something, but he quickly cut me off, shaking his head. ''No, Vanessa, it's true. If I hadn't come up with that stupid bet everything would still be fine.''

Marina looked at him sympathetically then jumped from her roost to the lower branch where I stood.  
''Hey, it could have been a lot worse,'' she said trying to cheer him up a little while holding up her hand to him in an encouraging gesture. Just then I realized the silver band stuck to her left wrist.  
Shade's eyes widen, noticing it too. ''You've got a band!'' exclaimed excitedly and pointed at her wrist. Marina looked shocked for a second and quickly covered the silver metal under her wing.

''What band? ... Oh, you mean this band!? Got a problem with that?'' she asked glaring at us. We both shook our heads, confused about her reaction.

''Ehm, no,'' Shade said, ''Should we?''

"Don't you know? ... It's cursed." she hissed through her teeth.

''Now wait a moment Marina. That's not ...'' I lift up my hands trying to reason with her, but she quickly interrupted me.

''Save it furless,'' she scoffed at me angrily,'' ''I don't need to hear any lies coming from someone like you, just to make me feel better or something.''  
I looked away feeling hurt by those words but instead of feeling sorry for what she just said, Marina simply implied she was hungry and flew off.

''You should follow her Shade,'' I said quietly, ''You haven't eaten since we got into the storm. I'll wait for you here.'' I didn't even know why Marina's words hurt me so much but I wanted to be alone for a moment albeit Shade had other ideas.

''You haven't anything since then as well,'' he said, ''Come on, let's try finding some food together.'' He took off and grabbed my hands with his feet before flying into the forest.

It didn't take long for us until we caught back up with Marina. The brightwing was chasing a tiger moth when she notices us behind her. Instead of chasing us away she kept concentrating on her prey and managed to grab it with her hind claws and carried it towards a tree where she then roosted upside down. Shade followed her wordlessly and set me down on the branch below before roosting beside her.

''I was out hunting. All alone,'' Marina began, holding the dead moth in her claws, ''Suddenly I was hanging in mid-air, caught in this huge net. Then ... this giant hand reached in and ... that's when they banded me,'' she looked away, sighing deeply.

''Then what happened?'' Shade asked.

''I flew home,'' she said, ''but when the other Brightwings saw me with this band they banished me.''

''Why?''

''When the humans tag you, you're marked for certain death,'' she said and threw another icy glance at me before gulping down her moth within a few bites.

''Death? Are you sure? I mean I know someone who ...'' Shade tried to tell her something but Marina quickly cut him off not wanting to talk more about it. Nevertheless, did I try to explain the truth to her myself: ''Marina the bands are not a curse,'' I said, ''My kind band bats to keep track on them in order to help them not to get extinct.''

''Why should I believe what you say after what your kind did to me? I've lost everything. My friends, my family. All because of this stupid band.'' she shoved her banded wing right into my face, growling at me. ''Even if it's not the bands' fault for what happened to me, it's certainly yours and your kinds fault. After all it was you who made this stupid thing and put it on my wing.''

I opened my mouth to object but couldn't find the right words. Instead, I closed it again and just looked away with my teeth pressed together in order to hold back the urge to cry even though tears started to burn in my eye. Why was she so mean to me? It wasn't my fault what happened to her. I wasn't the one who banded her.  
Marina just huffed at me angrily then stormed off with a snarl.

I swallowed my sadness and looked away, trying not to take what she said to heart too much while Shade jumped down to me, consolingly putting a hand on my shoulder.  
''It's alright Vanessa. I'm sure she doesn't mean it,'' he said, ''She is just upset about what happened the last time she encountered a human.''

''I know,'' I said while rubbing the tears out of my eyes,''But that still doesn't give her the right to blame me for it just because I'm a human as well.'' Shade let out a sigh and seemed to think about what they should do now, then my stomach starts to growl. I totally forgot that I still haven't eaten anything yet.

''Come on, let's grab some food and leave this place, OK?!''

''I thought you wanted to stay here?'' I asked looking at Shade in confusion, but the Silverwing shook his head. ''Not with a bat who isn't willing to accept you as their friend as well.''  
I nodded thinking the same and let him carry me down to the ground near the shore and close to a bush full of juicy berries.  
Plucking some out I felt glad to have something to eat that aren't bugs and watched Shade flying off into the forest, probably to catch some food for himself.

For a moment I just sat there next to the bush, eating my berries and thought about the future.  
Sure this place was nice and such, especially the magnificent view of the sea.  
Yet, Shade was right. No matter how beautiful it looks no place can be called home if their inhabitants are unwelcoming to any of us.

While finishing my last berry I started humming a little to myself as I looked out to the sea, listening to the soft rustling of the waves. _''... And all the light will be, will be ... And all the future prophecy ... And all the waves, the sea, the sea ... And on the road are you and me.''_  
Singing softly I stood back up and walked around the coast, a soft breeze blowing through my hair.  
 _''And all the winds are like a kiss ... And all the years are nemesis ... And all the moments fall in mist ... And all is dust, remember this.''_  
During my walk I watched some bugs buzzing through the air and hopped over some pebbles with my arms stretched out, trying not to fall off. Then I looked up watching the sparkling stars in the sky above. _''And all the light will be, will be ... And all the waves, the sea ...''_ My eyes went back to the waves. _''And all the waves, the sea, the sea. When all the light will be ...''_ I hopped down from the pebbles and continued walking on the sand, continuing my song. _''And all the dust will drift away ... And all the nights and all the days ... And all the heavens go their way ... And only change is here to stay.''_ Finally, after walking around a bit more I sat down on a small patch of grass with my back leaning against a small rock and scribbled some random picture into the sand with a stick. _''And all the light will be, will be ... And all the waves, the sea ... And all the waves, the sea, the sea. When all the light will be ...''_  
With a soft sigh, I glanced back up, staring at the starry sky. _''And all the stars without a name ... And all the skies that look the same ... And all the clouds that fade and then ... Then all of this begins again.''_ I kept humming some more and felt my eyes getting a bit heavy. Slowly I stopped my singing and closed my eyes in order to take a short nap on the shore. I barely fell asleep when suddenly I heard Shade screaming and spun around, now fully awake, to see the two bats flying over the sea as of the killer whales charged towards them with its mouth wide open. ''MARINA!'' I shouted in alarm but it was too late.

The orca snapped its mouth shut around the brightwing before she could even do anything and plunged back into the water.  
For a moment I just stood there in shock, not knowing what to do while Shade circled over the sea.  
Just then the whale showed up again, blowing its blowhole free from water which got me an idea.

''Shade!'' I called, ''Quick! Cover the orca's blowhole on top of its head. So that it opens it's mouth.''  
The silverwing nodded, showing that he understood the plan and dived towards the orca's head, where he threw his small body on top of its spout, clutching on it.  
''LET HER GO!'' he grunted. Immediately the whale felt like something was wrong and twisted and turned its body around in order to get the pesky bat from its blowhole. Like glue, Shade stuck on its head and kept his old while the killer whale plunged underwater trying to lose or drown him.  
Mesmerized I watched the whole scene from the coast, unable to help. Then finally the whale's strength faded. Tired and beaten it had no choice but to open its mouth in order to get some air and Marina flew out as quick as she could. Her fur was covered in saliva, but she lost no time for it and rushed back to the island.

I sighed in relief and watched Shade releasing the whale by getting shot up from its head by a fountain of air. He then fluttered back to me in order to grab my hands with his feet and followed Marina towards a totem pole close to the fishing hut and roosted under one of its wings after setting me on top with my back close to the wood.  
There the brightwing shook of the yucky spit from her fur before looking at Shade with admiration written on her face.  
"You saved my life," she said.

''Oh, that was nothing,'' Shade smiled humbly, ''Besides it was actually Vanessa here you should be thankful at. She told me to block the blowhole from the whale.''

''...I see,'' Marina said and glanced up at me shortly but seemed unsure about what to say. I just nodded telling her it's alright. It was clear we wouldn't automatically become friends just because I supposedly helped Shade rescue her from that whale.

''Anyways,'' Shade started again, probably getting uncomfortable with the silence between us three, ''Marina, you didn't let me finish what I was saying about the band.''

''Oh, that...'' Marina looked away visibly unhappy about the fact that he brought up that topic again.

''Frieda, our elder, has a band just like yours,'' Shade said quickly before Marina could even think about flying off again. Instead, she stayed where she was, glancing at the young male with astonishment.

''An elder ... banded? Like me?'' she asked with disbelieve.

''Well, maybe not exactly like...''

''And she is old?''

Shade nodded with a smile, ''Practically ancient,'' he said then flew up to me on top of the wooden wing with Marina.

''Then maybe the bands doesn't mean certain death,'' Marina said thoughtfully.''

Shade shrugged, ''Well, that orca didn't get you,'' he said. Marina nodded, still thinking about it. ''Maybe,'' she said, ''it means that I'm destined to be an elder too.''

''Elder Marina,'' Shade smiled, ''I like the sound of that.''

I had to admit it had a nice ring to it though it probably won't ever happen if she stays on that island especially with no other bats around.  
Shade, however, didn't seem to worry about that and told Marina everything from what we learned from Frieda in the echo-chamber, what happened to his father Cassiel and also about Nocturna's great promise.  
''I knew about Nocturna,'' Marina said thoughtfully, ''and I've also heard something about the great battle but in my old colony, they never told us anything about this promise. You really think we can come back into the sun?''

''I don't know how but it sounds like something worth to fight for. It can't be that the owls and other animals keep us in the dark just because our ancestors didn't take a side in that stupid battle of theirs,'' Shade said frowning with determination and I nodded agreeing with him.

Marina chuckled with a grin. ''You really are quite the little troublemaker, aren't you? Go see the sun, scare your mother to death, get your roost burned down by the owls. You really aren't the most popular bat in your colony I bet.''

''He he yeah, probably,'' Shade chuckled.

''Alright you guys, when do we leave?''

''Leave?'' Shade asked.

''Yeah, to join your colony, so I can meet this Frieda.''

''I ... I can't,'' he said, shaking his head. ''I can't face my colony. Not after losing Tree-Heaven.''  
I sighed softly as he looked away in shame of what happened, knowing it's my fault as well.  
Marina looked at us compassionately before putting a hand on the small silverwings shoulder.

''Come on Shade, don't be so hard on yourself. At least your colony didn't banish you.

 _Or feed you to the owls_ , I added in thought.

''I just wish you could have seen Tree-Heaven Marina. It was the biggest hollow oak ever with the gnarliest roosts and all kinds of chambers and roosts and ... and...'' Shade stopped sighing once more while telling her about his old home. Marina's face lighted up a little as if she got an idea and flew up from the roost and us to follow her.  
Shade and I looked at each other, wondering what she was up to before following her into the forest.

''Hey, where are we going?'' Shade asked as we kept flying deeper through the thicket.

''Just a little further.'' Marina sang cheerfully and just a few wing beats later we came to a clearing with a giant bare tree right in the middle of it.  
Shade and I were amazed by its size. It looked way much bigger than the tree the Silverwings used as their nursery home.

"So?'' Marina asked looking at us with a grin, ''What do you think? Its big, it's hollow, it's gnarly-.''

''It's amazing!'' I said as we checked the tree from all sides inside and out. It was huge with several small entrance holes in the bark and enough room for more than hundreds or more bats to fit in.

"It's perfect! This can be our new Tree-Heaven," Shade said joyfully and landed me and himself beside Marina on a branch of another tree close by. "We've got to let the colony know about this Vanessa.''

''Of course,'' I said smiling. Shade smiled back and turned to Marina. ''I guess you get to meet Frieda after all.''

''Then it's settled,'' the brightwing said happily, ''we head for the mainland. Together.''

''But, which way is mainland?'' I asked. Instead of answering Marina just grinned and pointed out towards the open sea.  
I looked and gulped with my heart sinking down. This was going to be one long flight.

* * *

 **AN:** _ **And here is Chapter 8 for you ^w^**_

 _ **The song I've used here is Humming by Enya. I choose this song because it's random lyrics remember me from my childhood where I used to sings songs like this to myself quite often.**_

 _ **I'm going to put more songs later in the story but not every second chapter. That would be too much I think.^^;**_

 _ **Now, I hope you like how this is going so far and I'll see you on the next part ;)**_


	9. Unwelcome

**Chapter 9: Unwelcome**

* * *

''It can be a rough ride,'' said Marina, as we hang and sat there on the branch with a crescent moon shining in the clear sky accompanied by a few stars and a soft breeze flowing through our hair and fur. ''But you shouldn't have too much trouble — even with those stubby wings of yours.''

''My wings aren't stubby!'' Shade frowned at her.

''Well they are certainly not as big as mine,'' she said, stretching herself a bit, ''It's a simple fact: The bigger the wings, the faster you fly and up here on the high sea speed is the name of the game my little friend and in that department, I've got the edge.''  
I just rolled my eyes while listening to this and hoped we won't regret traveling with her if she keeps going on with this.

''All I know is me and Vanessa made it through the storm last night,'' Shade muttered, ''And those winds were pretty bad. I can handle it.''

''Sure, if you say so. But don't expect me to carry you as soon as your wings grow tired on the way,'' With that Marina lifted off from her roost with Shade following her a few seconds after with me dangling under his feet. I wished I could fly as well and hoped my weight wouldn't be too much of a problem for Shade. Slim build like I was it shouldn't have been much of a trouble for him to carry me along the way but I knew he had already problems carrying his own weigh through the sky, due to his small wings and I doubted Marina would offer to carry me instead should he really do grow tired after a while.  
Also, I couldn't help but felt nervous flying over the open sea. Luckily it was much calmer now than it was last night during the storm.

''I never thought I would leave that Island,'' Marina said after a short while closing her eyes with a sigh, "You guys do remember what an island is right? Body of land. Surrounded by water." Instead of answering Shade just grunted and panted while trying to catch up with her. ''Keep it up Shade. You are doing great. For a Silverwing.''  
I wondered if she thought about convincing Shade to drop me into the water to move quicker and held tighter onto his feet.

''Don't worry Vanessa. I've got you.'' Shade grunted with effort. I just nodded at him thankfully not wanting to start a conversation at our current situation.

''Come on it will soon be sunrise,'' Marina reminded us and as I took a glance at the eastern sky I could see the horizon lightening up already.

''Thanks for the update,'' Shade muttered and flapped his wings a bit harder.  
Suddenly I heard squawking over the clouds above us, which sounded like laughing. Right then a seagull glided down to us from the clouds, chuckling in amusement.

''What's so funny?'' Shade asked frowning at him.

''You guys are working way too hard.'' the bird said, chuckling some more than flew back up into the clouds. Slightly confused I watched Marina following the bird and heard her ordering Shade to fly higher as well.  
I was really happy I couldn't see the ground through the clouds below us, feeling already sick enough from the high.  
The seagull from before circled around us together with two others chuckling and squawking with joy.

''You brought us here to watch feeble bird tricks?'' Shade asked Marina slightly annoyed due how exhausted he must've felt.

"No, just hold your wings out,'' Shade looked at her funny but did as he was told just to drop down a few centimeters, making me squeak in fright. Luckily he quickly caught himself again and flapped his wings back up to Marina. I clung to his feet as if my life depended on it.  
''Don't ... do this ...again!'' I hissed, still feeling startled.

''Sorry,'' Shade said sheepishly and looked back at Marina to see her holding her wings out like he did earlier but unlike him, she didn't fall but glided through the air without effort. Curiously he carefully spread his wings out again and was surprised at the feeling of the wind that seemed to carry him over the sea.

''Oh, wow. This is so much easier,'' he said joyfully.

"Yeah it was pretty clever of me," Marina smirked.  
I raised my eyebrow, knowing she probably just took it from the seagulls floating around us.  
Then Shade came up with a brilliant idea about a race towards mane land.  
Before I could say anything, the Silverwing took off, not even finishing the countdown and rushed ahead with the help of the wind on his back.  
I felt sick.

Luckily, I didn't have to endure this hell of a trip for long. Shortly before sunrise we finally reached the coast and looked for a good place to rest in a small cave nearby.  
Shade and Marina kept chattering about their race and debated on who had won for hours while I couldn't care less about it and just laid down on the rocks, using my new cloak as a pillow and fell asleep.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

In the city, not too far away from the coast, two pigeons sat on a rooftop deeply involved in a friendly conversation not feeling like they have to worry about a thing in the word. Not even the loud purring sound of the circling fan in the air vent close behind them seemed to bother them much.

''Haha so the next thing you know blamo! He's flown right into the other bird again,'' one of the pigeons laughed telling his friend a funny story about someone else not noticing the danger that sneaked further from the depths of the air vent.  
Silently like the night, the rotation of the fan got stopped by clawed hand and a dark figure quickly rushed out and up to the two oblivious birds.

''And then it hits me,'' the pigeon says with a wing over his head as he continued his story, ''I says: It's a mirror. Oh boy did he feel stu ... Huh!'' He suddenly stopped talking as soon as he spotted the giant shadow looming over him. Eyes widen in shock he watched a creature like he had never seen before grabbing his friend by the neck and dragging him away to kill him instantly. Petrified with horror the pigeon covered a nasty scratch on his neck which bled a little before finally his surviving instinct kicked in and he quickly flew away as fast as he could, screaming in terror.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

The next evening I woke up to the sound of the wind blowing over the sea and felt a dry feeling in my throat.  
Not wanting to wake up the others, I carefully got up and climbed out of the cave in search of a few drops of fresh water.  
Outside the sun was nearly gone, turning the horizon into a beautiful picture of orange and pink.  
Despite hearing water dripping, the only aquatic liquid I could find was a few drops falling from the roof of the cave that barely eased my thirst and the sea close by which was much too salty to be drinkable. Hoping I might find something better I kept wandering over the sandy ground until I heard wings flapping behind me.  
I turned around I saw Shade landing behind me with a couple of berries in his claws.  
''Here, ''he said, handing them over to me, ''I was looking for you after I woke up and found this berries at the edge of a forest close by. Thought you might be hungry, so I picked them for you.''

''Thank you, Shade,'' I smiled at him thankfully and took the berries, feeling hungry indeed.  
They tasted a little sour but it didn't matter. At least I had something to drink thanks to the berry juice.  
As I was eating Shade took off again, either to check on Marina or to go hunting. Probably even both. I was still mentally debating on the idea of having her with us. She wasn't a bad person/bat but I still felt kinda unwelcome around her and I really hoped this would change soon otherwise this would be one hell of a journey. At least for me. Rather, would I travel around on my own, instead of being in company with someone who prefers I leave the group as soon as possible.  
But like I said, things might change, so after I finished eating my berries I tried to think of something else until I saw Shade returning from his hunt accompanied by Marina.

''Well, I suppose we dawdled away our time enough already,'' she said, ''we should get going or the sun will rise again before we even left the coast.''

 _Geeze_ , I thought, _The sun just barely set a moment ago, no need to panic._

''Sure, let's go,'' Shade said seemingly not feeling bothered by Marina's tone, instead, looking eager to start flying as well.

''Alright, then call up your sound map and check your colonies migration route.''

Immediately the excitement vanished out of the silverwings face.  
''The ... what?''

Marina rolled her eyes. ''Your sound map. You know that thing your mother sang into your ears before the beginning of your journey?!''

''Oh, that. Hehe yeah I know about that,'' Shade said chuckling nervously which made even me wonder what was wrong.  
''So, would you please now tell us which way to go?'' I could see how annoyed Marina was getting by the way she looked at him with her wings crossed before her chest but I doubted Shade was playing some joke on her. He nervously bit down on his underlip as if thinking about what to tell her.

''Eh, well the thing is I've ... never actually called up the sound map.'' he finally admitted, causing Marina to laughed at this probably thinking he was kidding. But then she saw the shameful look on his face and groaned in annoyance.

''Holy sunlight Shade, now you are telling me this?!''

''Oh ... I ... It never came up before.''

Marina let out a sigh shaking her head a little then looked back at Shade.  
''Okay listen! Close your eyes and try to remember what your mother sang to you.'' Shade did what she said and closed his eyes as he tried to focus on his mothers sound map. Unfortunately, he seemed to be having troubles concentrating and shut his eyes tightly while holding his head with both hands like he was having a headache. Eventually, he opened his eyes again with a gasp and shook his head heavily.

''Overload,'' he said catching his breath, ''I can't process it all. How about we just use your sound map, Marina?''

''Genius idea Shade, if we want to find my colony. Ugh,'' she said face palming herself.

''Just try it again. We don't need the whole map just the first part of it,'' I said trying to be helpful. Shade nodded and closed his eyes once more, concentrating hard.

''... I see a human city nearby,'' he managed to say after a moment but before he could tell more Marina quickly  
cut him off. ''We'll start there,'' she simply said and flung herself back into the air.

Oh boy _._ ''We better follow her Shade.'' He nodded and jumped into the air to grab my hands with his feet and after a few seconds, he finally managed to lift me off from the ground and took off after Marina.

* * *

We flew right along the coastline, following a human road and kept up a good pace through the night. Under my feet, the grass stretched for miles, sparkling with frost and despite the warm clothing I was wearing, I shivered like a leaf and even sneezed two times. Hopefully, I wouldn't catch a cold or something. This was really the last thing I could need right now.

''I've been thinking about this promise,'' Marina suddenly said after a while, ''About coming back into the light. Wouldn't we go blind?''

''Only if you stare at the sun for too long.''

''But you guys just saw a bit of it right?''

''Well yeah,'' Shade replied, ''But Frieda saw it all. They just don't want us to have it. The other birds and beasts.'' he frowned thinking about this. ''Know what I think? If we could get the sun we'd grow, and we wouldn't have to worry about the owls hunting us. We can ask the other Silverwings. The males who are banded. ... If we ever catch up.''  
I followed Shade's gaze into the horizon silently wondering the same.

''Do you think the humans will help us somehow?'' Marina asked Shade, peering doubtfully down at me.

''That's what my father though. And Frieda thinks so as well. So I guess it's worth a try,'' he said with a shrug. Marina didn't reply anything to this and just kept flying silently beside Shade.

Moments later I heard wings flapping not too far away from us and I looked to my right to see a colony of bats passing by.  
''Hey Shade, over there. I think it's your colony,'' I called out to him, causing the Silverwing to look at the bats as well, beaming with joy. ''Come on, Marina!'' Quickly Shade burst through the sky until he was close enough to the colony so the last ones should be able to hear him calling out to them. ''Hey! Hello! It's us. Shade and Vanessa. We are back.''

Three bats to the rear stopped and looked back. Noticing us they came closer and for a moment I felt a grin appearing on my face imagining it to be Ariel or Mercury and how overjoyed they must be to see us but as soon as the bats came closer I heard Shade breathing sadly and my expression changed into disappointment.

Those weren't Silverwings. They were Greywings with thick grey fur and handsome sideburns covering their faces.  
Landed on the nearest tree we waited for the three bats to come talk to us. Maybe they could at least give us some information about the Silverwings whereabouts.  
It was three males. A young chubby one with light grey fur, amber eyes and black hair matching his mane and growing beard, a slightly older one with darker fur, blue hair and brown eyes and a middle-aged male with pale blue eyes, silver colored fur and dark grey wings with his body covered in lots of faded scars he probably got from fights in his younger years. His left hand was even missing half of his thumb claw.

''Where are you two headed?'' the chubby one asked, smiling down at us friendly, seemingly not noticing me behind my two companions.

''We are looking for the Silverwing colony,'' Shade said, ''Have you seen them?''

To our frustration, the Greywing shook his head. ''We came from the northwest. We saw a few other colonies but not Silverwings.''

''Which way were they headed?'' asked the second one.

''South down the coast towards the city.''

''Probably not too far ahead of us then. Did you get lost?''

''Two nights ago in a storm.''

''Too bad,'' the blue-haired said with a compassionate sigh, ''Well I don't envy you going into the city. It's not a good place for bats. We prefer avoiding it and go around it before continuing south. You are free to come with us for a while if you like.''  
''Thank's we really appreciate this,'' Shade said with a smile.

I looked up and stared at the Greywing colony in the close distance. Mothers and Fathers flying with their children, sometimes whirling off to quickly catch some food then come back together.  
It seemed tempting, flying with a big group like this and it would probably be much safer than continuing our way alone on our own. But I also felt a bit uneasy traveling with a large crowd where I knew not a single soul.

Suddenly the old Greywing gasped and I turned my head to see him staring directly down at me, his eyes widen in horror.  
''Eh, is something wrong?'' I asked feeling slightly confused but also worried.

''Great Nocturna help us!'' he breathed and his expression changed into anger as he glared down at Shade furiously.'' Are you out of your mind boy. Carrying a human creature along with you and your friend?''

''What? Why? She is not that bad, really we ...''

''Abraham, look!'' the blue-haired Greywing hissed pointing towards Marina, ''She has a band.''

''A human and a cursed bat?!'' Abraham growled not believing his old eyes, ''That's bad luck, very bad luck. Didn't your mother teach you anything? They'll bring doom on all of us.''  
Shade shook his head and tried to convince them of the contrary but they didn't want to listen.  
''You are welcome to travel with us Silverwing – but not them.''

Abraham and the other two male Greywings stared coldly at me and Marina, growling softly.  
Shade looked at us both and seemed to think about something before shaking his head and glaring back at the three Greywings. ''If they can't come. I'm not coming either,'' he said.

''Suit yourself. But If I were you I'd ditch them before it's too late.'' The Greywings darted back to their colony and on their elders command they swung inland, away from the water, away from us.  
Soon after they were gone I heard Marina sighing sadly. ''I'm sorry,'' she said, ''I forgot to cover the band. I thought they were yours.''

''It's alright,'' Shade replied, ''I just don't understand. Why do they think the bands are bad luck? Something must have happened, more than just stories.''  
 _Probably._ I thought the only question was: What?

''Maybe you should have gone with them,'' Marina said tersely.

Shade looked at her in shock. ''Why should I?''

''Nothings stopping you.''

''I'm not leaving. Not you nor Vanessa.''

''You think I need your company? I'm used to living alone. I don't need you or your colony, Shade.'' She stared at him hard then looked away. ''I'm ... forget it.''

''Maybe there are different kinds of bands,'' Shade said, ''Good ones and bad ones. I don't know.''

''And which have I got? Guess I'll know when I burst into flames.''

''That won't happen, Marina,'' I said and flinched at the venomous look she threw me.

''What do you know?'' she snarled, ''Those stupid bands wouldn't even exist if it weren't for your kind.''

I clenched my teeth together and looked away with a frown, feeling hurt by her words. So she still hadn't changed her mind about this topic so far.

''Girls, please. Let's not argue with each other. We have more important things to think about, remember? Let's just continue our way into the city. There must be a tower we need to find. It's a landmark on my mothers sound map.''

''Alright,'' Marina huffed and nodded at Shade but not without giving me another cold glare, making me wish that stupid pearl had turned me into a bat instead of just shrinking me.

* * *

 **AN: _Here you go chapter nine for you :) I know it's probably not so good but I tried my best. Hope you like it anyways._**


	10. The wrong tower

**Chapter 10: The wrong tower**

* * *

For the next few hours, none of us spoke much besides Shade telling us some more details of what we were looking for until we reached our destination, the city. To my current size, it seemed like a huge place with an endless grid of light that streamed hypnotically in all directions. The air itself was filled with the sound of cars beeping and honking that you might wonder if there even was someone asleep at this hour.

We kept flying close to the buildings to be able to quickly hide in small spaces in the walls in case of an emergency but for now, everything seemed fine.  
Besides, it wasn't like we had to be afraid of anything anyways. The owls got their revenge and according to the law, no bats were to be harmed in the night. So everything was fine, yet I would've felt much better if we finally found the Silverwings.  
Who knows how far ahead they were already or if they waited for us on the landmark.

Speaking of it, we just passed another corner and there right ahead of us stood a square stone tower. At least hundreds of feet high and decorated with lots of ornaments, carvings and numerous windows. Some bright, some dark.  
Near the top was a massive white clock with roman numerals, whose black hands showed it was close to ten pm.  
The top part itself was a steep spire with a gabled window on the sides which was blocked by beams of wood.

''Is this it?'' Marina asked as she flew closer alongside me and Shade.

''It must be,'' Shade beamed and swung in towards the top where he landed himself and me on one of the beams next to Marina, who let out a sigh in relief. ''Finally,'' she said but Shade didn't seem much happy about it like he was before.

''Uhm guys,'' he said unsure, ''I'm not sure this is the same tower on the sound map.''

''Sure it is.''

''Well, it doesn't have a cross.'' We all looked up at the top, seeing that he was right. There was no cross just an ordinary point.

''Well, did you see any other tower in your little sightseeing tour?'' Marina asked sounding quite exhausted.

''Eh, no but I ...''

''Ok,'' she said, interrupting him, ''Then what else could it be?''

I was just about to say something when suddenly there was a huge banging sound coming from the inside of the tower that made me and the two bats flinch. The sound was so loud we had to held our ears in pain and waited for it to turn off.

''Argh my ears.'' I hissed waiting to be able to hear again, feeling glad the vibration didn't shake me of the wood, otherwise I would've probably plunged towards my death.

Marina shook her head then looked back at Shade. ''That proofs it, you said you heard a loud bong.'' But Shade still didn't seem confident about it. ''This isn't it,'' he said, causing Marina to groan in annoyance.  
''Then where is it? Honestly Shade, I feel like I'm doing everything.''

''You're doing everything?'' Shade frowned ''It was my sound map. That's just...''

''Stinks,'' I burst out, pinching my nose in disgust. Shade looked at me funny and shook his head.

''That's not what I was going to say.''

''No, really this place smells. Bad.'' Shade and Marina now started sniffing as well and wrinkled their nose by the scent coming from the inside of the tower.

''Urgh, you are right Vanessa. It smells ... foul.''

Suddenly without warning, a pair of wings appeared at the opening and snatched the two bats inside. Before I could even realize what was going on, another wing appeared and pulled me into the tower as well.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~  
**  
Meanwhile, not too far away from the city, the Silverwing colony kept on moving down south above the forest. Thanks to the lighthouse they used to wait out the storm everyone was fine. Well, everyone except Ariel.

Anxiously she kept looking around, hoping to find any signs of life from either her son or Vanessa.

''Any signs of them?'' she asked hopefully looking at Mercury who flew down beside her his own eyes mirroring the worry of her own.

''I'm sorry Ariel, nothing,'' he softly replied, shaking his head, causing her to sigh deeply.

"For your own good you two should forget about those two," Bathsheba spoke up and the two bats turned around to look at the chubby elder flying up to their side. "There's no way that they could've survived that storm.''

"You're wrong, they're still out there," Ariel retorted shaking her head. "I can feel it." She looked up into the starry sky with hope in her voice.

''A mother's faith. Touching but foolish."

''No, Ariel is right they ...'' Just then Frieda joined their conversation, interrupting Mercury by his words.''

''We must continue on to the cathedral, where we can wait for one more night, together,'' she said ignoring Bathsheba frowning at her while Ariel and Mercury gave their leader a generous smile.

''As an elder, you have to think about what's best for the entire colony,'' Bathsheba reminded her.

"We are way ahead of schedule we can afford an extra time in the city,'' Frieda said smiling, earning a thankful smile in return from Ariel.

"Fine," Bathsheba growled. "But if they don't show up by then we move on." And with that, she flew ahead leaving the three bats behind.

Ariel sighed ''Thank you, Frieda,'' she said while Mercury nodded. ''Yes, thank you.''

"I think your faith in Shade and Vanessa is well-placed. But listen," Frieda said, giving them both a warning look, "a word of caution, watch what you say to Bathsheba." Ariel and Mercury both glanced at each other or a second then nodded understanding and continued to fly along with the rest of the Silverwings.

The city wasn't too far now and Mercury still kept looking for both Shade and Vanessa while also keeping an eye on any dangers for the colony. Like Ariel, he too believed that they were both somewhere out there still alive. The piece that ripped off Vanessa's dress was stuck on his thumb claw, giving him hope as well.

As long as he had this he felt sure the small human was alright and there was nothing to worry about besides ... that what was flying straight towards them.  
''Dive! Take cover!'' he called out and without hesitation, every bat quickly dove and hide under the rooftop of a nearby building.  
Seconds later a squadron of owls rushed past them towards the old clock tower, led by General Brutus himself without noticing any of them.

''What was that about?'' Mercury asked, catching his breath.

''I can't imagine. I thought the score was settled with the owls when they burned down tree heaven,'' Frieda answered with a look of concern on her face.''

''I guess they didn't consider that punishment enough,'' Bathsheba said glaring at Ariel right next to her.

''Owls in the city are uncommon and those owls were in battle formation. That's never a good sign.''  
Frieda let the colony stay hidden a couple of seconds before thinking it was safe enough to continue on. She couldn't help but grow a bad feeling about those owls she just saw.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Inside the tower, everything was dark and awfully smelling, like rotten junk in an unclean garbage can or a toilet not cleaned in weeks.  
The stench was so bad I felt sick in my stomach. Any worse and the blueberries I ate would surely come back up again to say hello.

Shade, Marina and I were thrown on the floor by three birds who kept us down with their feet on our back and wings, so we won't escape.  
Besides the smell, the room was filled with a curing sound that seemed to come from everywhere, especially above us.  
Glancing upwards I noticed more birds sitting on wooden beams, crisscrossed over our heads like a giant web.

''Pigeons,'' Marina breathed and thanks to a ray of light that shone from an opening in a corner I could see she was right. Around hundreds of thick grey feathered birds glared down at us with small menacing eyes.

''You've seen them before?'' Shade asked looking up at the pigeons as well

Marina nodded. ''They run the sky in the city. They are everywhere.''

''But ... why weren't they asleep?

She shook her head, ''It's like they were waiting for us.''

''They can't do this,'' he frowned, ''We weren't doing anything. The night is ours.''

''Somehow I don't think they care Shade,'' I said, watching the pigeons glaring at us angrily from above.

''We must have hit a patrol roost or something,'' Marina said, glancing up as well, ''Lucky us.''

''Captain, here are the renegades that Hegland saw kill our friend.'' spoke one of the pigeon's who was holding us down.  
The birds on the lowest beam parted respectfully and a big pigeon swooped down to us with his chest thrown out, head held high. A menacing emphasized scar runs from his face down to his throat.

''Silence!'' he called out and quickly the surrounding crowd grew silent.  
''More light!'' A piece of paper was pulled from the opening on the floor and dazzling light, which I assumed to be coming from the giant clock below us, brightened the room a bit more.  
The captain studied us with an ice-cold glare. He pulled Shade's hair causing him to cry out and hit Marina on the head with his wing. Then he walked over to me and I could see the surprise sparkling in his eyes for a second.

''What is this a tiny human?'' he frowned at me incredulously then called out for one of his soldiers.  
''Hegland, come forward,'' he ordered and another pigeon appeared from the shadows. Walking slowly with his head hung low in order to avoid the gazes of the other pigeons, came a poor looking thing who seemed to just witness something horrible not too long ago. On one side of his neck was a nasty scratch, that was still oozing. He took a short look at Shade, Marina and I then shook his head.

''Eh, these aren't the ones. I ... I told you they were huge and there wasn't a small human with them.''  
I raised an eyebrow wondering what he was talking about.

"Are you sure, tech what I'm saying you are never sure." The captain said rolling his eyes in annoyance.

''Oh, what if the giant bats come back?'' Hegland said quivering with fear. ''Their wings were...''

''Enough!'' the captain snapped, causing the poor bird to lower his head in shame. Then he looked back at us and I couldn't help but gulped in fear the way he was looking down at us. Observing us with his deep orange-red eyes before turning his attention to Marina.

''How about it Brightwing,'' the captain said staring down at her, ''You look like the smart one.''  
Marina just glared back at him, so he nodded towards the pigeon pinning her down and who then squeezed his toes tighter around her arms, causing her to cry out in pain.

''Hey, Featherhead leave her alone!'' Shade growled earning an angry glare of the captain who was then just about to stomp his feet on his head as one of his other soldiers cleared his throat.  
''He's arrived sir,'' he said and out of the shadows came a huge bird, much bigger than the pigeons. By the shape of its head and beak, I quickly figured that it was an owl but not any ordinary owl.

''B-B-Brutus.'' Shade stuttered, recognizing him too with his eyes widen in fear.

The owl general averted his big yellow eyes from the pigeon captain, who gave his salute and turn over to us. ''You,'' he said deprecatingly, focusing on Shade and I. ''Wasn't breaking the law enough for you bat? You and your colony have now graduated to murder?''

''Murder? My colony would never murder.'' Shade exclaimed glaring at him but the owl general wasn't impressed at all.

''So,'' he said, ''you admit it was just you and you two friends here.''

''We didn't do anything,'' Marina called out trying to help.

The pigeon captain spoke up. ''My sentry described them as giant bats, unlike these two.''

''Preposterous, the Silverwings are obviously killing innocent pigeons as retribution for our burning of tree heaven.''

''That's insane. No bat can kill a pigeon.'' Shade said.

''No one bat perhaps,'' Brutus agreed, ''But ambush by the entire colony ... Besides, I've heard tales of cornered bats and the wiles they employ. A bat scorned will stop at nothing.''

''That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.''

''Yeah, I agreed,'' I said frowning, causing the owl to look down on me now as well.

''I've also heard stories about humans use their strange magic that can turn any harmless creature into a furious beast,'' Brutus said, looking at me, eyes squinted.

''What? That's ridiculous.''

''Guys, shut up!'' Marina hissed but Brutus wasn't bothered by Shades or my outraged words.

''If I were you. I would listen to your wise little friend here,'' he said towards Shade, shortly glancing over to Marina. ''Tell me where your colony is NOW!''

''I don't know,'' said Shade firmly.

Brutus growled and looked over at Marina again. ''Why exactly is a Brightwing in league with those puny criminals?'' he questioned, frowning down on Shade and me.  
Marina looked over at us as well but with an uncertain look on her face.

''Answer the general!'' commanded the captain of the pigeons.

''He is not criminals!'' Marina answered glaring back at the birds. I couldn't help but felt quite disappointed that she apparently only defended Shade but Brutus didn't seem to care about it anyways. He just huffed and shook his head as if he had expected such an answer coming from her. ''Blech bats. Your ancestors couldn't see who to side with and neither can you. You creatures make me sick.''  
I glared at him angrily, wishing to give this overgrown chicken a piece of my mind but stayed silent knowing it would just make things worse.

''Captain,'' Brutus spoke up. ''post sentries all over the city.''

''It's already been done, General.''

''Fine,'' Brutus said, ''you bats are no longer protected in the night. Any bats seen in the sky, night or day, is sentenced to death.''

''No! You can't do this.'' Shade shouted in fury and I too watched the owl, who was about to leave, with horror not believing my ears. The nights closed. That meant no one was safe now. Not them, not the Silverwings, not all the other bat colonies who are just flying towards their winter roosts without having anything to do with this all.

''I'll alert the owls in the northern forest,'' Brutus continued. ''Oh, and captain ... torture those three prisoners until they reveal the colony's whereabouts.'' He gave a pleasant smirk before flying out of the clock tower and disappeared into the night.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Back with the Silverwings, the colony had almost reached the cathedral when Frieda noticed something odd at the landmark. Sending out her echo vision she saw three pigeons guardian the place like they were waiting for them

''I do not like this,'' she muttered softly, ''we should skip this landmark and move on to the next one.''

Bathsheba rolled her eyes after hearing this. "Don't be so dramatic Frieda they're just pigeons. So what?"

"First, owls in battle formation now pigeons on guard duty at night. Something is wrong." Frieda replied.

"You are the leader, do carry on but I still disagree." Bathsheba just said and look off to inform the others about their leader's decision. With a sigh Frieda glance at Ariel, noticing the worried expression on her face and tried to soothe her.

"Don't worry Ariel, I promise we will stop and wait for Vanessa and Shade later but for now we must fly on." With that Frieda lead the colony away from the cathedral. Ariel stood behind for a moment, looking anxiously at the building before following as well.

Unknown to them all, two giant bat-like creatures, just like the ones the pigeon soldier Hegland described, were feasting on yet another bird they've just caught as one of them noticed the colony passing by. His companion noticed them too and an evil grin appeared on his face as a malicious idea formed in his mind.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

''Prepare the bats and that human for the amputation,'' ordered the captain and soon a bunch of pigeons started sharpening their beaks on the stone walls between the wood beams.  
Knowing what they were planning to do I gulped and felt my heart sinking into my stomach with my blood freezing with fear.

''What does that mean?'' Shade asked, looking quite scared as well ''Amputation?''

''You don't want to know that, Shade. Believe me,'' I said, trying my best to stay calm.

''Oh and you know that of course,'' scoffed Marina, causing me to glare at her.

''What's your problem? It's not my fault we ended up in this situation.''

''Maybe but that still ... ''

''Girls, can you please continue this conversation one other time,'' hissed Shade, ''we need to get out of here as fast as possible.''

I looked away knowing he was right. This wasn't the time to quarrel we needed a plan. A plan to escape.  
Looking around I couldn't find anything useful except for the piece of paper next to the hole where the light came out. Remembering the captain calling out for light earlier brought me an idea.

''Shh Shade!'' I whispered to him, ''Pigeons can't see in the dark.'' I nodded towards the hole, and he smiled at me, understanding my plan. Seeing his captor now sharpening his own beak as well, completely ignoring him, Shade didn't wast a second to squirm out of his grasp. Ignoring the pain of his wing getting sliced by the pigeon's claw he plunged forward and quickly covered the hole with the paper.

Immediately everything went pitch black and the pigeons fluttered around in blind panic. Shade hurried back to us and bite my capture into his toe which made him let go of me. He then grabbed my hands with his feet and soared back into the sky after Marina freed herself from her capture as well.

''Don't let the prisoners escape!'' one of the pigeons cried out. But the birds were all confused and scared. They tripped over they own feet and bumped into each other's heads. One bird accidentally gave me and Shade a massive hit with its wings that catapulted us out of the tower. I felt dizzy from the triple somersault but luckily Shade was able to catch himself again.

''We made it,'' he cheered.

''Yeah, but what about Marina?'' Shade looked around and noticed that our Brightwing friend wasn't with us.

''Oh no, she must still be inside the tower,'' he said. Right then we heard Marina calling out Shade's name in fear from the inside of the clock tower.

''We need to save her,'' I said.

''Right.'' Shade nodded and flew back inside the clock tower. Inside it was still chaos with birds screaming and fluttering around, making it nearly impossible to fly around without getting hit by wing again. Not too far fluttered Marina but her way was blocked by a pigeon. Without hesitation, Shade flew over to help and I kicked the bird on its head to knock it away from her and together with Marina, Shade and I also managed to kick the bird down to one of the beams.  
There it managed to capture the brightwing under one of his wings but Shade quickly bite it to make it let go, and we soared back up to the exit. Still trying to avoid pigeons who kept blocking our way.

Suddenly Shade hissed in pain and I looked up in concern seeing him folding his right wing to his body. ''Shade what's wrong? Why are you ... WAAAH CAREFUL!'' I called out but it was too late. Without looking where he was flying Shade crashed against the hard stone wall, hitting his shoulder and my head before plunging down on a wooden beam below.  
I heard Marina gasps in shock and felt quite dizzy with my head hurting like hell.

''Are you ok?'' she asks, helping Shade back up who just told her to fly before lifting off himself with me dangling under his feet and out off the tower.

* * *

 **AN: _Oh, what is this? A new chapter and that so soon? Yeah, I managed to keep a hold on my writing motivation a bit longer to finish this chapter sooner :) I also might be able to finish the next chapter in a few days as well but the one after that will take a bit longer for a reason I'll tell you at the end of chapter 11._**

 ** _Anyways thank you for the nice reviews so far and I hope you guys will like this chapter as well. ^w^_**


	11. The right tower

**Chapter 11: The right tower**

* * *

Six pigeons burst after us through the window. I took a short glance over my shoulder and gasped at how close they were. Not only that, they were also fanning out across the sky, surrounding us.

''Can we outrun them?'' I heard Shade asking with panic.

''Don't think so,'' panted Marina.

We dashed over the city, swinging wildly around towers, skinning rooftops, plunging down into deep canyons. But the pigeons kept hunting us stubbornly.  
I knew if we didn't find a hiding spot soon, they would surely catch us. But where?  
On top of that, Shade was hurt. His wing had a nasty hole in it, and he could barely keep up with Marina due to the pain and with me hanging on his feet.

I felt bad for letting him carry me around while he was wounded. He looked so worn out already. He needed a break. Soon.

Marina noticed Shades condition as well but didn't offer to carry me herself. Instead, she, at least, asked him if we should stop, so he could rest his wing.  
Shade shook his head breathing heavily and growling slightly.

"Pigeons, I hate them almost as much as I hate those stupid owls,'' he said

''Shade, revenge isn't worth it,'' I said looking up at him, ''We have more important things to do, like finding the Silverwings. We got to warn them. Remember Brutus prohibition.''

''I'm sure he remembers it, Vanessa. We all do. But finding a tower with a cross on its top isn't so easy like it sounds. This place is like a maze,'' Marina said with a hint of irritation in her voice.  
Before I could reply anything to her I heard a familiar sound of bells ringing and scanned the area until I spot the origin of the sound right ahead of us and my face lit up with joy.

''Guys over there!'' I beamed, ''There it is, the cathedral. That building with the tower with the cross on the top from your sound map Shade.''  
Both bats looked into the direction I shortly pointed at with one hand and their faces lid up with relief. Yes, it had to be the right one.  
The tower looked almost like the one where they encountered the pigeons but crowning on its spire was a metal cross, glinting silver in the city's glow.

''That's where they were meant to stop.'' Shade calls out happily and flew faster as if just the sight of his colony's landmark gave him new strength into his tired and wounded wings.

Suddenly I heard Marina gasped behind us and I turned around, wondering what was going on. Without warning, she quickly swooped down, grabbing Shades shoulders by her feet and dragged him and me over to the edge of a building close to the cathedral.

''Hey, what's the big deal?'' Shade demanded to know after we landed. Marina hushed him and motioned us to come closer.  
Carefully we three looked around the corner and saw three pigeons sitting on the roof between the gargoyles, guarding the place. I recognized one of them as Hegland, the anxious bird who told us and the other pigeons about the two giant bats that had killed and eaten his friend before his eyes.  
He still seemed to be a nervous wreck and shivered heavily while scanning the area with fearful eyes as if he feared the giant bats would come back anytime soon. Poor guy.

Even though I felt bad for him, Shade, Marina and I still needed an idea to get rid of those three,  
otherwise, we couldn't land there. And what about the Silverwings?

Looking down at the building, I noticed a lamp, which glows shone right under the pigeons on the roof. This gave me an idea.

''Hey you two, see the lamp down there? You know the shiny thing right under the pigeons?''

''What's with it?'' Shade asked.

''I believe I've got a plan in which this might help us to get those pigeons to leave,'' I said.

Marina didn't look very convinced about it. ''Aha, and what exactly do you have in mind?'' she asked skeptically.

''Remember, what that one pigeon called Hegland said? About those giant bats?'' I paused seeing them both nod, ''Well, there none of those around to help us right now but how about we let those birds up there think there are giant bats?'' I couldn't help but grinned seeing their faces lit up as they finally understood what I was trying to tell them.  
Not wasting any more time the two bats flew over to the lamp and landed on an eave next to it.

Meanwhile, on the roof above Hegland seemed to be more paranoid than ever. He apprehensively looked around and shivered like crazy.  
One of the other pigeons rolled its eyes by his behavior and told him to stop with this nonsense.

''There were like this stone monsters come to live,'' Hegland said, looking with fear at the gargoyle next to them and screamed as his companion tapped his shoulder before laughing at his reaction. The third pigeons landed down beside them and laughed as well.  
Hegland frowned not liking how they made fun of him like that.

''Laugh all you want. I know it's not safe out here.'' He started shivering again and the two other birds stopped laughing and shook their heads in annoyance. Then they noticed something behind them and turned around to see two large bats hovering intimidatingly above them.  
With a terrified scream, the pigeons stumbled over each other in blind panic and fled as fast as they could. Hegland right at the front, thinking the giant bats came back to get him.

Shade and Marina fluttered over the lamp and tried their best to calm down their laughing. Then Shade flew back to where he left me and carried me up to the roof of the cathedral where the pigeons were before with Marina landing beside us.

''They fell for it,'' Shade said still laughing a little. Marina chuckled as well. ''I thought someone was gonna break a wing trying to get away first,'' she said holding her stomach.  
Joining in we three laughed for a few minutes until Shade stopped and hissed in pain. His wing was still hurt and in need of medical attention.  
With a soft sigh, I looked around but couldn't find any traces of other bats around.

''The colony isn't here?'' Shade said disappointed not seeing anyone as well.

''You think we missed them already?''

''I don't know.'' Letting out a sigh Shade turned his head away and looked up at the giant stone gargoyle right next to us. ''Check out Mr. Ugly over there. Tell me he doesn't look like a giant bat,'' he said, his expression changing back into a smile as he points at the demonic looking statue with its mouth wide open and long stony tongue rolling out of it.

''Come on Shade. You don't really believe in giant bats, do you? That's just a story made up by sacred birds.'' Marina said chuckling a little.

''Actually, it isn't as unlikely as you may think,'' I told her, ''Thought coming across something like these around here does sound overstated I have to admit.

The young Brightwing looked at me skeptically then jumped into the sky with her wings spread open, teeth baring. ''Bah! You better dash before I dine,'' she said, pretending to look huge and dangerous. Then she stopped her acted and landed back before me and Shade, looking very much sure of herself. ''Really guys giant bats don't exist!''

''Really?''

All of us gasped when suddenly an unexpected voice appearing out of nowhere.

''You'd be surprised.'' the voice continued. It was a deep echoing sound which seemed to come right out of the gargoyle's mouth. But that couldn't be, right? It was just a statue. It couldn't talk.

''The world is full of strange and wondrous things. Just because you never see them, doesn't mean they don't exist.''

''Like giant bats?'' Shade asked unsurely.

The strange voice surely came from the inside of the gargoyle mouth but I still refused to believe it spoke to us. The voice must come from something inside the statute.

''Come inside!'' said the voice instead of answering Shades question and again I was sure it sounded more like the voice of a bat.

Curiously I took a little step closer to the statue and into its mouth. The gargoyles' throat extended far back into the spire like a sort of tunnel. I hummed and looked back at the two bats behind me.

''You don't expect us to go in there, right?'' Marina asked afraid and took a step back.

''It's the right tower. The cross and everything. And I believe there is a bat inside,'' I said

''You sure?'' Shade asked.

''Don't be afraid,'' came the voice from deep inside the spire.

''Well, that's good enough for me,'' said Marina sarcastically.

''Look,'' I said,''it's got to be safe otherwise, Shade's colony wouldn't use it as a landmark right?''  
I looked over to the Silverwing who nodded in agreement.

''Yeah, I suppose you are right with that.'' Marina sighted as if knowing there was no point in arguing against it. ''After you.''

Shade jumped into the air and grabbed my hands with his feet before flying into the gargoyle's mouth with Marina close behind us. A few seconds later we landed in a big room inside the spire with all kinds of plants hanging on wooden beams all over the place.  
A few feet ahead of us roosted a bat upside down on one of the beams and scribbled something with its claws on a wooden wall while muttering to itself.

''Ah, Greywings leaving right on time.''

''Who are you?'' Shade asked. The bat dropped itself from the beam and landed on the one below before turning to us with a friendly smile on its face. It was an elderly male with long white fur and wings. His eyes were dull and had no colors or pupils inside, showing that he must be blind.

"My name is Zephyr," the white bat introduce himself. "I'm um…" He put his claw on his chin as if he forgot the right words and then snapped his fingers finding the answer while walking over to us. "… The bat traffic controller for the migrating colonies. This city is a central harbor through which all colonies pass. Those are the flight paths, my dear ... uh,'' Zephyr said turning to Marina who swooped down to the wall with all different kinds of signs and symbols written on it, looking at them curiously.

''Marina, my name is Marina. And those are Shade and Vanessa,'' she said introducing herself and us to the old bat.

''You know where all the colonies are?'' Shade felt amazed and flew down to Zephyr as well and set me down on a beam. Carefully I kept myself close to the walls, refusing to look down into the endless depth underneath us. Compared to this was the pigeon tower much safer. At least there was a floor to walk on while here were only wooden beams but luckily those were big enough, so I shouldn't be able to slip of right away. Still, I hated myself for being so anxious about highs.

''So, where are the Silverwings,'' Shade asked looking at the scribbling.

''Eh, they passed by here about two hours ago heading south,'' Zephyr answered rubbing his chin.

''We can catch up with them in no time. Let's go.'' Shade beamed and was about to leave right on spot.

''Well, off you go then. Unless you think that ripped wing of yours will slow you down,'' Zephyr said calmly and pointed at Shades torn wing. I frowned wondering how he was able to see this if he was blind? Then again. He was a bat and bats are known to see quite well with ears instead just with their eyes.

Shade, who until now didn't think about his injury, looked down on his wing and gulped. Dark blood oozing out of it slowly.  
Without warning his eyes rolled back into his head, and he collapsed right on the beam.  
 _Seriously?_ I thought and exchanged an unimpressed glance with Marina.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

In the meantime, the Silverwing colony made their way further away from the city through a small forest. They were all worn out from the long flight. Some of the youngest pups were even so tired by now that their mothers decided to carry them.  
Exhausted like the rest Frieda flapped her old wings laboriously up and down and peered between the trees, hoping Mercury would soon return from his scouting with good news.

Like on cue, the male Silverwing emerged out of the forest with a smile on his face.  
''All clear,'' he exclaimed happily and pointed down towards an empty human building in the middle of a small clearing.

Frieda sighed with relief. ''Finally, a place to roost,'' she said and led the colony down to the building and chose the wooden beams under a water tower as their roosting place.  
Soon all Silverwings landed upside down on the beams, happy to finally be able to rest their wings for a while.  
The chief elder herself chose a roosting spot right next to Ariel.

''Frieda, I'm sure Shade and Vanessa will catch up with us,'' she tells her confidently.

''Ariel, we can stay here for a few days.''

''Frieda,'' the sharp, raspy voice of Bathsheba intervened, making them both look up to see the pudgy elder landing on the wooden beam below, ''This is no time for the colony to be lazing about.''

Frieda frowned at her before looking at the rest of the colony seeing most of them preparing themselves to sleep a bit while a few others decided to go and catch some food.

''The weak should be left behind,'' Bathsheba said.

''The colony arrived together and it will leave together.'' Frieda retorted glancing back at her.  
Bathsheba grunted disapprovingly and flew away to go hunting as well.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

I watched how Zephyr squished some red berries over Shades wound to rub the mush over it with his foot while the Silverwing finally gained back consciousness. Sitting back up he looked over to me sitting right next to him cross-legged.''

''Welcome back,'' I said smiling at him, happy to see him okay and awake again.  
He smiled back but then raised his eyebrows in confusion while staring me in the face.  
''Uh, Vanessa, what's that on your forehead?''

''Hmm? Oh, that. That's just a healing paste from Zephyr for the bruise I got thank to you crashing us onto the stone wall in the pigeon tower earlier.''

''Oh, sorry.''

''It's fine, nothing's broken'' I said and looked up just to see Marina talking to Zephyr.

''When are you going to migrate,'' she asked curiously while crouching on one of the wooden beams above.

''Never,'' Zephyr answered, ''My full name is Zephyrnaia, which means protection. I believe it is my destiny to protect other bats as they migrate.''

''Don't you miss your colony?''

''I was abandoned as a baby. Perhaps you know what this is like,'' Zephyr said turning his head up to Marina, who looked at her band with a sad sigh.  
I sighed as well and felt a little guilty since my kind was the reason why she got banished from her family and friends but something confused me.

''Ehm, excuse me Zephyr,'' I said, ''But how did you manage to survive all on your own when you were left behind as a baby?''

''I was lucky to be found by a kind human who lived in the cathedral. He took me in and cared for me until I was old enough to look after myself,'' Zephyr answered turning back to me, ''But since I didn't know where to go and if there even was a colony who would take me in, I decided to stay here and help other bats like that human has helped me.''

''A human cared for you, you say?'' Marina asked looking at him with disbelieve, ''But aren't they dangerous? I mean most of them? Why else are so many bats afraid of the bands?'' she said throwing a short glance at me before telling Zephyr everything about her colony and our encounter with the Greywings.

''It is right to be careful about the humans,'' Zephyr said, ''their customs are mysterious, and they are known to attack bats, thinking we are pests or worse evil spirits something to be destroyed and I know for fact, that there were bands who killed their wearer. But whenever it was the band itself or the nature of the bat who wore it no one can say.''

''My father had a band.'' Shade intervened now sitting up straight. Then he looked down on his wing, sniffing at the mush smeared over his wound and made a grimace.

''Urgh, yuck! Keep that stuff off of me my wing is fine,'' he insists and got up while shaking the mush from his wing.

''That stuff is a healing poultice. And your wing doesn't hurt because it's working.'' Marina said annoyed about Shade's stubbornness and flew down to us.  
The Silverwing looked at his wing and tried to lift it a little but it still hurt a lot. Groaning in pain Shade fainted again.  
Me, Zephyr and Marina only shook our heads watching this.

Then Zephyr took some new berries and smeared another poultice on Shade's wing.  
Marina, however, found a strange rolled up red leave with thick veins. She curiously picked it up sniffing it a little then pulled it close to her mouth as if wanting to taste it.

''Careful!'' Zephyr warned her, ''That's strong medicine. That herb kills pain. So don't lick your wing or you'll be knocked out for a week,'' he adds towards Shade who just woke up again.

Shade sighed, relieved to feel the pain in his wing getting better and nodded at him while getting up once again. ''Let's go guys we gotta find the colony,'' he said and grabbed my hands with his feet to carry me up towards the entrance where he landed again waiting for Marina to come up as well.

''Oh, by the way'' Zephyr said cheerfully, ''If that poultice falls off and your wing rips in half just come on back. I'll be happy to give you some more.''

''My wing ... in half?'' Shade asked in shock, holding his wing and collapsed again before Marina could catch him.  
Unfortunately, he fell right against me this time, causing me to fall down on my bottom with  
an unconscious Silverwing lying on top of me. Sighing softly I just shook my head getting tired of this.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

In the forest near the human building, which was actually a sawmill closed for the night, the Silverwings were still resting and hunting.  
Frieda stood on top of the water tower and glanced at the horizon while letting the cold breeze flew through her long hair. Suddenly a red cardinal male swooped down and landed in front of her with an angry frown on his face.

''Hey, this is my mosquito hunting territory,'' he snapped at her rudely.

''We Silverwings are just here to rest and eat before we move on,'' Frieda explained.

The cardinal's expression mysteriously changed after hearing this. ''Oh, you are Silverwings. Oh, then please stay as long as you want,'' he says exaggerated friendly and flew off again.  
Chinook, who had listened to their conversation landed beside Frieda and together they looked after the bird with a concerned look on their faces.  
Something wasn't right.

* * *

 **AN: _Surprise! A brand new chapter and that so soon :D XD_**

 ** _Now you might wonder how this is possible._**

 ** _Easy, as you may know, I'm rewriting my old version of Promise of the Night and this chapter wasn't so bad so I simply kept most of it like it was before and only changed some details. :3 However the next chapter now will truly take some time because I want to add another song to it which I yet need to find._**

 ** _Anyways goodbye and please read and review ;)_**


	12. A lesson for life

**Chapter 12: A lesson for life**

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

With Marina's help, I managed to roll the unconscious Silverwing off my lap and got back up, rubbing my temples in annoyance. Shade could be such a drama queen sometimes.  
However, his wing was injured and needed to be healed before we could continue our flight back to his colony. Otherwise, Shade might really lose his wing and even though Zephyr just said it like a joke it wasn't really something to laugh about.  
I gulped thinking about how the pigeons wanted to amputate our limbs just to make us talk back at the clock tower.

 _Argh, stop thinking about that!_ I admonished myself and shook my head, to get those thoughts out of my head. Afterward, I leaned back against the wall, the white hood pulled over my face and let out a deep sigh. Even though we were temporarily saved here for the pigeons and owls I couldn't help but hoped for Shade to recover fast, feeling worried for his colony. What if Brutus threat had already reached them? What if he got them all captured or killed?  
We really needed to get back on our road but not until Shade's wing was fully healed.

Hearing a slight cough I looked up to see Zephyr smiling down at me with a few red berries in his hands.  
''Here my child.'' he said friendly, offering me the berries,'' eat this. You probably haven't eaten for a while and you will need your strength for the long journey that lies ahead for you three.

''Uh, thanks,'' I said and took the berries, just then realizing how hungry I was, since my last meal had been last evening at the beach before our flight into the city.  
While I was eating the berries Zephyr also brought me a leaf with water to drink before fluttering off to his herbs.

Boy, must I have been thirsty. In only one — two sips I emptied the whole leaf and felt so much better afterward.  
Now, the only thing I longed for was a snatch of sleep. We had been through so much this night no wonder I was starting to feel tired by now.  
Looking around I spotted Shade snoring softly on a bed of soft leaves with his injured wing stretched out to the side while Marina hung close to Zephyr and talked to him a bit. Soon I saw her trying to hide a soft yawn with her wing, telling me that she was getting tired as well.

Without a doubt, sleep was something we all needed right now, so I got up to find myself a good spot to rest. Preferably as far away from the deep opening in the middle as possible.  
Still, I was scared to accidentally fall down the beam during my sleep. Just then I heard our host calling my name, so I walked over, wondering what he could want from me.

''Here my dear. Since you are unable to sleep like we bats do, I hope this uh... nest here is comfortable enough for you to sleep in instead,'' he said, showing me a cozy looking pile of soft green leaves.

''Oh, it is. Thank you, Zephyr,'' I replied with a smile and was about to climb into the leaves but stopped feeling slightly confused for a moment. ''Uh, how come you know I'm not a bat? I mean you ...''

''... are blind?'' he finished my sentence, chuckling a little. ''My child it is true that my eyes are no use for me anymore but I still have my ears and echolocation to orient myself plus I can smell a strong scent of human coming from you.''

''Oh.''

''Also, can I sense your fear of highs and I never heard about a bat feeling anxious about something like that before.''

I chuckled softly, ''Eh, yeah.''

''But don't worry the beams a wide enough for you not accidentally fall down.''

''That's good.''

''Well then I'll leave you to rest now. Good day.''

''Good day,'' I replied and finally climbed into my makeshift bed, taking off only my boots and cloak to use it as a blanket for some extra warmth and let out a soft yawn before closing my eyes to sleep.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Back at the sawmill most of the Silverwings were dosing under the water tower with only a few still flying around, catching some bugs in order feed themselves or their young.  
Chinook, however, wasn't hunting. Something else kept him awake. Something he had to think about since the burning of Tree Heaven. The feeling of guilt that had grown bigger once set into his mind since this dreadful night.  
He knew he should talk to someone about it but Todd was still holding a grudge against him and his mother probably wouldn't understand him as well. In her eyes, he was her perfect little boy who couldn't do anything wrong. Touching but unhelpful.  
Then he spotted Ariel talking with Mercury as they both fly by and figured that from all bats it was they he needed to talk at most. With a deep sigh, he jumped from his roost and flew over to them.

''Ariel! Mercury!''  
Both Silverwings looked over their shoulders, stopping their conversation to fly over to his side.  
''Is it Shade? Or Vanessa? Are they here?'' Ariel asked, hope glittering in her eyes but Chinook shook his head and looked away sadly, causing Mercury to sigh deeply. ''What is it Chinook?'' he asked.

''Tree Heaven burning down ... i-it was as much my fault as it was Shade and Vanessa's,'' he confessed. Shocked by this both adults gasped then flew up towards a streetlight and waited for Chinook to roost next to them, so they could talk more privately.  
''I was showing up in front of some friends,'' he began his voice shaking a little, ''I shouldn't have listened to Shade when he dared me to see the sun. I couldn't let the runt-'' he paused noticing Ariel frowning at him and quickly corrected himself, ''I'm mean I couldn't let him show me up.''

''Oh, boy,'' Mercury muttered and rubbed the space between his eyes. Newborns and their foolishness. Ariel just shook her head and turned away with a sigh, not believing what childish act caused them all so much trouble.  
But then she looked back and saw the young boy turning his own head away with a tear rolling over his cheek. Seeing this Ariel's expression changed into a soft smile. Quietly she moved closer to him and wrapped one wing around him in comfort to show him that she wasn't mad.

''I bet they are still alive,'' Chinook said changing the topic a little by talking about Shade and Vanessa.

''I hope you are right,'' Ariel said still smiling at him. ''We both do,'' said Mercury, slightly smiling at him as well. Chinook smiled back at them, rubbing the tears out of his eyes.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Early the next evening I woke up again, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I felt like I'd just closed them just a few minutes ago but looking at the fading light shining through a few holes in the walls I knew it had to be at least sundown by now.  
Looking around I noticed that the others were already awake as well and got up from my nest to stretch myself a bit. A few feet away I saw Shade roosting on one of the beams, testing out his wing.  
I smiled a little, happy to know he was going to be okay despite his injury.  
Zephyr was writing something on the wooden wall while roosting on a beam above it and Marina was sorting some herbals and berries and piled them up into small heaps.

Feeling like it was better to do something then to just awkwardly standing around I walked up to her asking if I could help.  
''Sure, whatever,'' she mutter without really paying attention to me. I sighed but began to sort the herbs as well beside her.

As Zephyr was scribbling on his wall, mumbling something to himself I picked up a large, rolled in red leaf and turned around to see Marina looking curiously at some red berries on the ground.  
''Ehm, Marina I don't think you should it that,'' I said warningly and threw my leaf next to the others.  
The Brightwing looked at me skeptically. ''And what makes you think so?''

''Well, ... you can't just eat any berry you see lying around,'' I said, not knowing how to explain myself better.  
Marina just shrugged and decided to eat the berry anyway despite my warning but stopped as Zephyr cleared his throat to get her attention.

''You really, shouldn't eat that,'' he said, ''But you might wanna squeeze some of its juice under your band.'' Marina hesitated, seeming unsure what to think of this. ''Go ahead,'' Zephyr coaxed her gently, ''I can hear your skin chafing against the metal.''  
Doing like she was told the young Brightwing squeezed the berry a little and rubbed its juice under her band, sighing happily. ''Ah, that feels good,'' she says.

Zephyr smiled friendly at Marina, then waddled happily across the room stumbling right into some leaves hanging from the beams. However, he just shook it off and went on as if nothing happened and picked up a leaf.

''The old guy is as blind as a mole,'' Shade said quietly and landed beside me and Marina.

''Shade!'' I hissed, thinking that was a little rude of him but the albino didn't seem to be bothered by this at all. ''Technically I'm blinder,'' he said, grinning a little.

''Who in his right mind would put a guy who can't see in charge of air traffic control?'' Shade asked irritated and sat down with his wings crossed before his chest.

''Sometimes hearing might be the better way of seeing,'' I said frowning at him a little.

''Incredible insight for one so young.'' Zephyr praised but Shade just huffed and rolled his eyes. ''I heard that,'' Zephyr said.

''Huh?!'' Shade shortly blinked in surprised then huffed in annoyance and stood up.  
''I'm going to test my wing. Maybe catch a bug or two,'' he said and flew out without looking back. I sighed watching him go and looked back at Zephyr who could only shake his head at Shades rash behavior.  
Marina looked a bit disappointed after our friend as well, then walked over to the albino bat.  
''Zephyr,'' she asked, ''do you know why the humans banded me? Is it a curse?'' I felt a bit hurt knowing that she still thought bad about something so harmless like the bands. Sure I could understand her suspicion, after all, she just lost her family and friends just for having one but the pure idea of those pieces of metal being a bad omen and such was just ... ridiculous.

''My child,'' Zephyr replied, ''the actions of the humans are inconsistent and ... eh, difficult to interoperate.'' The young female sight, obviously not satisfied with that answer, so he flew down from his roost and landed beside her, wrapping one wing comfortingly around her shoulder. ''Marina, you are special. But that has nothing to do with any bands.''

True. I thought and wondered if Marina will realize this someday as well.  
However, while hoping Shade to be alright out there I continued to help Zephyr sort his berries and herbs. Withal I had to think about Frieda's words back at the echo chamber a few nights ago and about the circumstance how I ended up in this situation. To be honest it still felt kinda like a dream to me but I couldn't tell if I would be happy to wake up from it or not.

''Is there something wrong my child?'' Zephyr, who I didn't notice walking up on me asked, startling me a little.

''Eh. No, everything is fine. I was just ... thinking about something that's all,'' I said.

The white bat stood there in silence and I got the feeling he expected me to say more, but I was unsure what to tell him and also felt awkward about the growing silence between us.  
However, his friendly smile and maybe the fact that he was an animal and no human persuaded me to tell him everything about what Frieda had told me and Shade in the echo chamber, about the war and the great promise and my thoughts and doubts of being a human shrunk to the size of a mouse and thrown into this mess without preparation.

''Frieda said that there is supposed to be some kind of glow inside us that shouldn't be darkened but I don't quite understand what she meant, I mean It was just coincidence that I found this pearl and ended up with the Silverwings.

''Well, my child. I know Frieda for a quite a while now and I have a high trust in her words and decisions and I have to tell that you do have something on you that makes you different from other humans. But it is on you to figure it out what it is yourself.

''Oh, OK.'' I was confused.

Zephyr smiled, ''Don't worry, I'm sure you will know your purpose in time.''

''Are you sure?'' I asked, still feeling skeptical about it and chuckled a bit doubtfully. ''I mean it was, like I said, sheer coincidence that I found this pearl in the first place.''

''Maybe but Nocturna's intentions are mostly something no one clearly understands. Not even I.''

''Hm, I don't know. It does sound reasonable Zephyr but seriously I doubt I play any special role in this ... story or the future of it or what so ever.''  
''That's what you may think. But believe me, my dear. Everything that happens happens for a reason as insubstantial as it may seem at first,'' he said.  
I sighed still feeling unsure as Marina walked over to Zephyr.

''No offense, but I somewhat also doubt that she has any important role to play. I mean, sorry to say this, Vanessa is a human and humans can never be trusted completely.''  
I glared at her angrily, having more than enough of her hateful attitude towards me. I didn't care if she was mad at every other human in this world as long as she would finally stop attributing me for everything my kind does, did or even will do in the future.

''I know you want to help all of us but maybe ...'' The white bat gently placed a hand on her shoulder, interrupting her speech.

''My dear child, I can hear by your words that you mean well even though the words you pick are not the best.''

''Well, I ...''

''It's true that it's been years since the last time I encountered a human being but that does not matter. I can still assure you that your anger at them will not get you further in life.'' With that, he turned around to walk back to his herbs but Marina wasn't ready to let this topic go. With a soft growl in frustration, she crossed her wings before her chest and shook her head.  
''Seriously Zephyr, I would never have thought that you would be so foolish.''

The albino bat just chuckled in amusement. _''Maybe I'm foolish. Maybe I'm blind. Thinking I can see through this and see what's behind. Got no way to prove it. So maybe I'm blind.  
But they're only human after all. They're only human after all.  
Don't put your blame on them. Don't put your blame on them.''_With a smile, he came back and pulled Marina a little around, so she and I looked at each other eye to eye. I could even see a reflection of myself, looking confused as her in the light of her pupils.  
 _''Take a look in the mirror and what do you see? Do you see it clearer or are you deceived ... in what you believe?''_ He stepped back, facing us both. _'' 'Cause they're only human after all. She's only human after all. Don't put the blame on her. Don't put your blame on them.''_ Zephyr flew off to his scribbles on the wall and motioned us to follow him. It was covered with all kinds of signs and symbols and totally confusing for me to understand but I knew they had to be important for the bat traffic control in this city. I felt amazed at how he could handle this all by himself.  
Turning to him I could see that he knew what I was thinking.  
 _''Some people got the real problems, some people out of luck. Some people think I can solve them ... oh great Nocturna above.''_ He turned back to Marina, _''They're only human after all.  
They're only human after all. Don't put the blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_  
Marina looked like she wanted to say something but Zephyr shook his head before she could even speak a word. _''Don't ask my opinion. Don't ask me to lie. Then beg for forgiveness for making you cry. For making, you cry.''_ He flew up and fluttered around us through the spire.  
 _'' 'Cause they're only human after all. They're only human after all. Don't put your blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_ I watched him fly over to the entrance and after exchanging a short look with Marina, she followed him up there with me dangling under her feed.  
 _''Oh, Some people got the real problems, some people out of luck. Some people think I can solve them ... oh great Nocturna above. They 're only human after all.  
They're only human after all. Don't put the blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_  
Quietly we landed beside him on the gargoyles stoned tongue, where he faced us again, more precisely Marina. _''They're only human. They make mistakes. They're only human that's all it takes ... to put the blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_ He then turned back around and motioning towards the starry night sky, shining above us. _''I'm no prophet or Messiah. Should go looking somewhere higher.''_ Smiling encouragingly he walked back up to us. _''They're only human after all. They're only human after all. Don't put the blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_ He then put a hand on each of our shoulders and looked at each of us.  
 _''They're only human, they do what they can. You're only human, you do what you can.  
Don't put the blame on them. Don't put the blame on them.''_  
Finally, he went silent and for a moment we all just stood there not quite knowing what to think or say. Eventually, we headed back inside when we heard something

''What was that?'' I asked, looking around, feeling alarmed. Then Marina let out a shocked gasped. ''Guys its Shade. He is in trouble,'' she cried out and right. There were three pigeons chasing our blue friend through the city.''

''We got to help him,''

''Don't worry, let me handle this,'' Zephyr said calmly and hopped towards to the top of the gargoyle's mouth. Blinking in confusion, Marina and I followed him a little and from this point, I could see how Shade was trying his best to escape his hunters but with all the bright light from the city lamps, it was sheer impossible for him to find a place to hide.  
And not just that, his injured wing also slowed him down as well. I wanted to help him, but since I was unable to fly there nothing I could do.  
Shade landed on a side of a building, too tired to fly any further and the pigeons got dangerously closer almost catching him. Suddenly they stopped right in mid-flight, looking confused.  
What are they doing? I wondered feeling puzzled myself and got even more confused when I saw them flying away from Shade chasing after something else. But there was nothing.  
Or was it?

''Who was that?'' Marina asked.

''Who was who?'' I asked her, turning around but instead of answering she just followed Zephyr back inside who, to top my confusion, chuckled as if he just scored a coup.  
I stood there still not getting what just happened and waited for Shade to return.

''Vanessa, did you just saw that bat? He suddenly came out of nowhere,'' he said as if he couldn't believe what he just saw.

''Well, I...'' I had no idea what he was talking about but before I could say anything more, Shade grabbed my hands and brought me back inside to the others.

''Whoa that was weird,'' Shade said after he landed us by the others. ''One minute he was there, the next he wasn't. You know how he did it. Don't you?'' he asked Zephyr. The white bat turned to him with a smile but did not answer his question.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, in the city, a few blocks away from the cathedral, a young grey rat crawled out of a drain pipe and sniffed around the area in search of food.  
Spotting a large container full of human trash, the rat scurried closer wondering if it might contain anything edible. Lost in it's thought the rodent was not aware of the dark shadow walking closer to him from behind and when it finally realized the danger, it was too late.  
Letting out one last screech for help the rat was quickly killed by a pair of razor sharp teeth, that sunk deep into his neck.  
As soon as the bat felt his prey go limb in its jaws, it carried it away to eat, leaving no evidence except for some scratch marks on the container.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Marina and I continued to help Zephyr sorting his herbs while Shade hung upside down on one of the beams, still brooding about what happened earlier. Suddenly a curring sound distracted him from his thoughts, and he looked around trying to find the source of it.  
Hearing it too I looked around to see Shade flying up the tower.

After changing a short questionable look with Marina, I let her grasp my hands with her feet, and we followed our friend up to another beam. Before anyone of us could ask what he was doing Shade hushed us to be quiet and pointed upwards. Looking up I first saw nothing special until I noticed something moving on the beams above us.  
To my surprise, a pigeon appeared out of the shadows. It was a female. She looked scared and her right wing was bent into an unusual way seemingly broken.  
She was no thread just hurt and probably chose this place to hide for something that must have attacked her.

Unfortunately, Shade didn't seem to think the same and started growling as soon as the pigeon came into view. Before I could stop him, he flew up into the bird's view, startling her a little.  
''You are one of those birds who tried to kill me out there,'' he snarled while landing upside down on the wood above the bird and glared at her.

''No, you are mistaken,'' the pigeon said fearfully and backed away from him, ''Look, can't you see? I'm hurt.''

Shade didn't listen to and just kept growling at her. ''Owls probably killed my dad,'' he said ''They burned down my home and then you guys tried to kill me and my friends.'' With each word, he crawled closer and closer to the terrified pigeon, who huddled into a corner shaking with fear. ''I hate all birds.''

''Shade, what are you doing?'' I said, trying to make him back off, but he ignored me. The bird tried to back away a bit more, but she was trapped and didn't dare to move past the furious Silverwing in front of her. To make matters worse a piece of wood broke under her weight and fell down to the bottom of the tower.

''Can't you see? I'm not a threat,'' she asked pleadingly while the wood underneath her feet made a sinister cracking sound. ''Please, I just came here to hide.''

''Hide?'' Shade asked, totally not believing her, ''from what?''

''G-giant bats. They attacked my family.''

''Well, they probably had a good reason. I know I would.''

''Shade, she is hurt. Back off!'' Marina said trying to reason with him but again the Silverwing refused to listen.

''Shade!'' I called finally getting angry at his behavior. How could he be so blind with his thoughts of revenge? Did he not see what he was doing? The beam under the bird cracked even more. It was just a matter of seconds before it would break through completely.  
''You are making things worse. Leave her alone already!''

''Please, don't you see what you are doing?'' the pigeon asked, tears running down her cheeks at how scared she was but Shade still just growled at the poor creature and even crawled closer to her.  
Just then the wood underneath her finally snapped, and the bird plunged down to the depths of the tower.

I gasped in horror as watched her fall down and tried to catch her, but she was already beyond my reach. Luckily Marina was holding me back, otherwise, I would have fallen off myself.

Shade, who finally realized what he had done, dashed after the pigeon, trying to save her as well but failed. Letting out one last anxious curr that re-echoed inside the spire the pigeon plunged deeper and deeper until she finally vanished out of sight.  
Still, in shock, I didn't notice how Marina carried me back down to the beams where Zephyr was, who scribbled something on the wood in front of him with his claws.

''Did you see ... eh um, hear that?'' Marina asked.''

''I heard a young bat blinded by his anger,'' he replied not turning around, ''Then I saw something changing him.''  
I looked away with a sigh as Shade landed between me and Marina.

''T — That wasn't supposed to happen,'' Shade said his voice shaking a little. I knew he did not mean for this to happen but it did. He looked down to where we had last seen the bird then closed his eyes with a sigh.  
I just shook my head and turned away from him again and sat down with my arms crossed before my chest.

''You should never underestimate the power of a kind act even towards one's enemy. Real or imagined.'' Zephyr said with a smile and closed his eyes to take a deep breath before letting out a sonic wave.  
Seconds later Marina and Shade gasped in fright and stumbled away from something behind us before I even knew what was going on.

''Guys what gives?'' I asked totally confused.

''Vanessa don't you see? There is a ...'' Marina didn't finish her sentence because whatever she and Shade just saw dissolved before I could get a better look at it.  
At first, both bats just stood there looking confused at what just happened but then Shade looked at me and finally got what was going on.

''That pigeon,'' he exclaimed, ''and the bat... those were echo projections?!''

I blinked in surprise and turned to Zephyr who just smiled and hopped away, chuckling softly.

''Will you teach me?'' Shade asked him with awe.

Zephyr thought about his request while scratching his chin and walked towards a pile of leaves. ''What I have to show you, you must be ready to see. Only one in a million bats can echo project,'' he says, picking up a leaf from the ground. ''We'll see. First, there are a few skills you need to master.''

''Like what?'' Shade asked impatiently and flew closer to the white bat.

''Oh like err ... sound mapping, star navigating and uh ... herbal remedies,'' Zephyr said.

''Herbal remedies? Ts, what do I do when I get cornered by an owl? Throw leaves at him?'' Shade laughed. Zephyr turned around and threw a sonic wave at Shade as Marina landed next to him.

''You obviously cannot use your size to overpower your enemy,'' he said.

''He is sensitive about his size,'' Marina whispered into the old bat's ear.

''The more you know the better chance you'll have against much stronger opponents,'' Zephyr continued to say and walked up to the Silverwing. With ease, he pushed him to the ground just by sweeping his foot away. ''Do you understand?''

''Oh, I see ... I'm ready,'' Shade said with a smile and held his hand up for Zephyr who, with a smile on his own face took his hand and pulled him back up on his feet.

* * *

 **AN: _Finally I've got some time (and motivation/inspiration/...) to write this chapter. ^^ I really hope you like it. Feel free to give a review of it ;) :)_**

 ** _The song I used this time is Human by Rag'n'Bone Mane but with slight changes._**


	13. Much to Learn

**Chapter 13: Much to Learn**

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

In the forest close to the Silverwings resting place, stood General Brutus, on top of a broken tree stump, impatiently tapping his claw on the wood. Flanked by two of his owl soldiers, he listens with annoyance to the requirements of a red cardinal in front of him.

It was the exact same red cardinal, who earlier allowed Frieda and her colony to rest and hunt in his hunting area.

''Ok, I'll tell you where the Silverwings are,'' he haughtily said, ''if you give me exclusive mosquito hunting rights for the whole valley.''

Brutus stared at the smaller bird, silently raising an eyebrow at his demand before bending down to him with a glare, causing the cardinal to immediately feel less confident in himself.

''Ok, half the valley would also work, yeah,'' he said, ducking away from the Generals intimidating glare.

''You'll lead a squadron of my owls to the water tower,'' Brutus commanded, definitely not being in the mood of discussions, ''We'll talk about hunting rights after the entire Silverwing colony is annihilated!''  
The cardinal gulped at the Generals strict words but didn't dare to object. Instead, he just nodded nervously and waited for a sign for him to lead the owls to the clueless bats.  
 **  
**

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

During the next few nights, Zephyr taught us a lot about the stars, orientation by the signs of nature and all kinds of herbal remedies we might need on our journey.  
At the end, he decided to test us a little to see what we already memorized so far.

To my joy, I managed to recall quite a few important things but Marina was able to recap much more. However, Zephyr was proud of both of our achievements. Even with Shade's who didn't answer much of his questions. He was still a little sulky that they had to learn all this boring stuff not understanding what this all had to do with learning to perform echo projections.

As we stood and roosted there in the gargoyle's mouth, Zephyr picked up a leaf and showed it to us. ''Stinging needle,'' I instantly called out, recognizing it by its shape and jagged border.

''H-hey! I was going to say that.'' Shade protested but Zephyr just smiled, ignoring his outburst and continued with the test. ''Used for what?'' he asked turning to the Silverwing roosting next to me. ''Shade?'' ''Aching joints,'' Marina quickly answered before him.

''Oh, that will come in handy,'' Shade grumbled, ''When I'm old.'' He turned his back on the three of us with his arms crossed. After a few seconds, he stretched himself with a yawn and started to complain again. ''We've been at this for almost two whole nights and you still haven't gotten around echo projection. Just constellations and boring herbs.''

''Shade you will need that knowledge for the journey ahead,'' Zephyr explained while poking some holes in a dried up leaf and showed it to him. ''What is it?'' he asked.

''A leaf?'' Shade replied with disinterest.

''And?''

The two bats and I looked at each other and the holes in the leaf, wondering what Zephyr meant to tell us, but then we all smiled and got an idea.  
Marina took the leaf from the albino and held it into the sky so that the starts fit perfectly into the holes, drawing out the constellation.

''Well done,'' Zephyr cheered, ''You three are beginning to use your brains.''

''Now, can I learn echo projection?'' Shade eagerly asked.  
The old bat smiled silently and motioned us to follow him back inside the spire.  
''Alright!'' Shade beamed and bumped his fist into the air before flying after Zephyr.  
I chuckled at his reaction and let Marina carry me back into the spire as well.

Back inside we three sat down on the wooden beams with Zephyr standing before us. With his thumbs and Forefingers pressed together, he instructed Shade what he had to do.

''Capture the object with your heart,'' he said, ''Listen to its form in your imagination. Once you can hear it. Sing it.''

Shade closed his eyes tightly and hold his head while concentrating hard on performing an echo projection. Or at least tried so. Not that I could've seen it anyway but Marina seemed to see nothing as well according to her unimpressed expression. Still, Shade tried as hard as he could.

''Can you see it?'' he asked us.

''See what?''

''Ugh, ... a giant ... bat, like the gargoyles with ... ugh ... huge claws and ... and teeth ...''

''Eh, that would be a ... no.'' Marina answered briefly. I snorted quietly. Did he really think he could perform something like that right on the first try?

''Try something simpler,'' Zephyr recommended, ''Like uh... a leaf.''

Again Shade closed his eyes in deep concentration and tried to screen the picture of a leaf.  
At first, nothing seemed to happen but then I saw Marina staring at the ground with surprise. However, her expression changed into a small laugh and Shade opened his eyes again, looking very exhausted.

''Well done, Shade,'' Zephyr praised.

But the Silverwing wasn't as cheerful as him. Instead, he looked rather disappointed in himself.  
''I couldn't hold it,'' he said, ''It's gotta be longer and bigger and scarier.''

''You just need some practice that's all,'' I said and the albino nodded in agreement and walked up to Shade, putting a hand on his shoulder.

''Also your emotions are getting in the way Shade,'' he said making Shade sigh deeply again.  
''But like I said, for your first try you did very well.''

''I wish I could've seen it,'' I admitted, ''It's really too bad that we humans are unable to see echoes like bats.''

''Well, if I were you I wouldn't worry about that much. I surely believe that with some time and practice you will be able to see echo projections as well. No matter if you are a bat or a human.''

I blinked in surprise and looked up at Zephyr, who's blind eyes focused at me together with a warm smile on his face.

''Really? But how will that be possible? I mean how can I even learn to see them,'' I asked.

''Let's just say you will find a way. For now, I think you should take a break and stretch your wings! All of you.''

''But...''

''You can pick some stinging nettle for me. A patch of it grows in an alley not far from the cathedral.''

''Alright,'' I said and let Marina grabbed my hands with her feet before she flew out of the spire followed by Shade to gather the leaves.

* * *

As we flew through the city I caught a sight of myself in the reflection of a building we passed by. I had to admit it looked kinda funny how I dangled under the Brightwings feet in the air like a puppet.  
Eventually, we arrived at the alley and quickly found the leaves Zephyr wanted and landed down right next to them.

''We pick, you stand guard!'' Marina said, pointing at Shade.

''What am I gonna guard against? The plant?'' Shade asked mockingly and started pulling the plant out himself.''

''Wait let me help,'' I said rolling my eyes a bit at Shades remark and together we pulled on the plant while being careful not to touch the leaves, not wanting to get any blisters.  
With a jolt, it was out of the ground and Shade and I tumbled backward onto our backs.

''Ouch, ... got it,'' I said, holding the plant up with him for Marina to see.  
The Brightwing smiled at us in return but then her expression changed into horror and Shade and I quickly turned around to see what was wrong.  
Strangely enough, I couldn't see any danger around but the young Silverwing made a dash with the stinging needle in his hands.  
I was about to ask him why he hit the air with the leave when I heard a familiar laugh close to us and looked to my right. There I saw Zephyr dancing and clapping his hands joyfully on an old shopping card and I chuckled, getting what was going on. The old bat must have followed us and pranked us with one of his echo projections.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

While the Silverwings roosted at the water tower, Chinook flew around through the forest hunting some bugs when two flying squirrels crossed his path.

Apparently, they haven't noticed him yet so the young male quickly jumped into a nearby bush to hide. From there he could hear what the squirrels were talking about.

''Oh how I hate this'' one of them complained. His companion nodded in agreement. ''Yeah, I know what you mean. It's harassment.

''I'm really getting sick and tired of being mistaken for a bat. Can't those stupid birds see the difference?''

''They seem to think just because we have fur and fly they can pull us over on a whim.''

The flying squirrel shook his head. ''Those owls. Instead of getting on our nerves they should rather protect us from these dangerous killing machines.''

Chinook frowned a bit, wondering what they were talking about.

''Are you sure the rumors a true'' asked the other one skeptically.

''Well, not directly,'' his friend confessed, ''But I don't want to stay here and find out if a bunch of bats want to kill me or not. Seriously, if that's really what's going on then I'm more than glad that General Brutus closed the skies for all bats.''

Chinook was shocked. The skies closed for bats? Even at night? He had to get back to the others immediately and inform Frieda about it.  
Anxiously he waited until the two flying squirrels continued their way then rushed back towards the water tower. There he noticed something flying in the distance and used his echolocation to see that it was a group of owls, lead by a red cardinal.  
To his shock, he noticed they were heading straight to the place his colony was resting.

Clenching his teeth together in anger, he recognized the little bird in front as the exact same one who offered Frieda to let her colony stay at the water tower in the first place, causing him to fly as fast as he could back to the others.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

After learning so much from the wise old bat it was finally time for us to go and to continue on our way to Hibernaculum.

''You can only hear the world around you with emotions that are calm and a heart that is open,'' Zephyr said while we all stood in the gargoyle's mouth one last time together, staring out into the starry sky.  
I sighed softly, wondering how the Silverwings were doing at the moment and if they were alright and such. Next to me Shade closed his eyes and called up his mothers sound map. As he opened his eyes again we heard the bells from the cathedral ringing. The sound echoing around us.

''Urgh, I doubt I will ever get used to that,'' Marina complained shaking her head.

I turned to Shade and was about to ask what our next destination was when I saw him perking his ears up as if he waited for something. The rest of us stood silent, not wanting to disturb him, but we surely wondered what Shade was hoping to hear.

Then after the bell ringed for the seventh time Shade flew up to the cross on top of the spire and ordered us to follow him.  
And after changing a confused look with Marina I let her grabbed my hands and flew up to Shade, followed by Zephyr.

''What are we doing up here Shade?'' Marina asked puzzled.

Before answering the Silverwing pointed at a bright star in the sky above. ''I managed to figure out the next part of my mothers sound map,'' he said, ''We need to follow this star right there. My mother gave me the exact time and place where I'm supposed to be, so I can set our new course by the stars.''

''Well, that's great,'' I said, recalling the number of bongs we have heard. Seven. So the time was now seven o'clock. ''But how can we stay sure we are still following the right star? We won't have the bell rings to tell us what time it is as soon as we are out of the city and I also don't have a watch with me.''

''You'll have to learn to measure time in your head,'' Zephyr told us as we landed back on the gargoyle, ''Your bodies know very well how much time has passed with each wing beat. The stars move at a fixed rate. Once you know that, you'll be able to check your course through the night using that same star up there as a guide.''

''Oh, sure. I get it,'' Shade said.

''You will manage it,'' Zephyr said, his blind eyes focusing us all, ''All of you. Just follow your star.'' He looked up as a shooting star suddenly flashed by causing us to gasped in awe by the sight of it.

''You can hear a star?'' Shade asked.

''Hear? He he no. But I can sense it.'' the albino said with a smile.

''Can you sense if we reach the colony?''

Zephyr concentrated and perked up his large ears, trying to catch the tiniest sound. With a sigh, he opened his wings as if that could help him to catch the sound better.

As we watched silently, I thought to see the underside of his wings darken and blinked wondering if I was just seeing things but the wings definitely seemed to be turning black and sparkled a little. Then Zephyr wrapped them over his head, cloaking himself.

''Your journey will be like all journeys. Difficult and not like you expected,'' he said, his voice sounding distant and uncertain, ''You'll meet an unexpected ally but beware of metal on wings. And ... you will find Hibernaculum.''  
My heart leaped and Shade and I looked at each other with a grin on our faces but Zephyrs voice was far from joy as he continued. ''But others are searching for it too. Powerful forces and I can't see who will reach it first or whether they bring is good or bad.''

Zephyr stopped and his head reappeared. He quickly folded his wings back together and told us that there wasn't more he could hear. ''The echoes are so faint and confused.''

''Thank you anyway Zephyr,'' Marina said with a smile.

''Yeah, thank you very much for everything,'' Shade said while I smiled at him as well.

''No problem. Now goodbye my children and good luck.''

We said our goodbyes to him as well and continued our way while I hung on Shades feet.  
And while we were leaving the cathedral more and more behind us I couldn't help myself but already started to miss the old bat, hoping to see him again someday.

* * *

As we flew through the city Marina suggested we should fly low so the owl wouldn't be able to see us and looked around for any signs of danger.  
Luckily everything seemed fine and the moment.  
I tightly hold on to Shade's feet and thought about random things to get my mind off the fact that I was technically dangling several feet up high in the air.  
Suddenly I heard something and looked around to see what it was.

''Something wrong Vanessa?'' Marina asked looking at me.

''I'm not sure but I thought I heard wing beats around.''

Shade looked around as well. ''I don't see anything. Are you sure you heard right?''

''Yes I am sure. Though it sounded quite faint I have to admit.''

''Well, let's take no risk guys and hurry up. The sooner we leave the city behind us the better.''  
I nodded and let Shade carry me through the air until we finally arrived at a forest with more places for us to hide in case of danger.  
Even though we seemed to be saved, I couldn't help myself but felt like we were followed by someone.

Eventually, we decided to take a short break and landed on a branch of a tree.  
''Dang it,'' I exclaimed suddenly remembering something I had totally forgotten.

''What is it?'' Shade asked.

''I forgot to ask Zephyr if he knew a way to turn me back to my old size.''

''You think he would have known a way to help you with that?'' Marina asked and I shrugged.

''I think so. After all, Frieda had said she wanted me to meet a good friend of hers on the way who might be able to help me and I'm sure she meant Zephyr.''

''Uh, well. If you want we can turn back and ask him.''

''No Shade,'' I said shaking my head. ''We shouldn't lose more time than we already have. Besides, we have more important problems think about first.''

''Holy Nocturna,'' Marina gasped, ''We totally forgot to tell Zephyr about the closed sky for bats.  
Shade and I looked at her in shock.

''That's right. We should have warned him,'' I said.

''Alright, that's it we are going back.'' Shade soared up and hovered over me to grab my hands.''

''Wait a second,'' Marina said thoughtfully, ''Maybe he already knows about it. I mean he has so much stuff in his storage that he probably won't be needing to leave the tower, so he should be practically safe.''

Shade didn't look very convinced. ''I don't know. Maybe we should ...''

''WATCH OUT!'' I cried out just seconds before the owl could impale Shade with its sharp claws.

Without any of us knowing, a white barn owl spotted us from a hidden place and attacked.  
Screeching furiously it charged on us again. I hurried to grab Shade's feet to get the hell out of here but the owl was faster and grabbed my hood with his beak.

''HEY! LET GO!'' I demanded and struggled in its grasp with my feet wildly kicking the air.  
Marina and Shade tried to help me by attacking the bird but didn't accomplish anything. With one stroke of its big wings, Marina was sent back to another tree while Shade tried his best to avoid the owl's talons while trying to reach me.

Suddenly something big hit the owl from the side, causing it to look around in annoyance.  
Confused about what was going on I looked up as well and gasped not believing what I just saw.

* * *

 **AN: _Here you go. Another Chapter and so fast ^^ Feel free to read and review. :)_**


	14. Life Saviors

**Chapter 14: Life Saviors**

* * *

Before the owl could even realize what was going on, sharp claws hit it in the face causing the bird to screech out in pain.

I managed to rip off my hood from its claw and desperately clutched onto the owl's foot in fear of getting tossed through the air. I even shut my eyes tight and silently hoped for this all to be over soon.

The bird now charged in turn but its opponent quickly dodged the attack by simply jumping out of the way.  
Fearfully I glanced back up to see the bat preparing for another strike.

Yes, a bat.  
It seemed unreal but recognizing its body shape and leathery wings I was certain it had to be one, though compared to my friends this one was gigantic.

Its wings were huge and nearly blocked full moon as it opened them to their full length with a dark chuckle before crashing down on the owl and sinking its claws into its flesh yet again.

Screeching in pain and irritation the owl tried to fight back but the bat just smirked and easily threw the bird over his head as if it was nothing but a toy and tossed him down towards the next tree.

I wanted to scream as I lost my grip during the fall but my voice seemed stuck in my throat. Luckily Shade was close by and caught me by grabbing my leg with his own feet and carried me over to the branch of another tree.

Catching my breath I sat down, leaning my back against the bark and waited for my nerves to calm down.

''Are you alright?'' Marina asked me as she landed beside us on the branch.  
I just nodded still feeling unable to talk and looked back up into the sky.

The owl had managed to stop its own fall as well. Unfortunately, it also spotted us and was just about to attack but when the huge bat from before tackled it by slamming its hind claws into the owls back, causing it to drift away from its course. The bat then clung onto the bird with its full weight and let itself get carried through the air with a sinister laugh before letting go of it again just for those two to wrestle with each other in mid-air.

Shade, Marina and I watched with agitation how the two opponents fought with each other, by rolling around in the sky until the bat finally managed to get itself on top of the owl and crashed them both right into a shrubbery down by the roots of the tree we were sitting on.

For a moment we watched with tense how the foliage shook and rattled because of the two still fighting inside then everything went silent.  
Neither I nor my two friends dared to speak a word. Like frozen we waited for something to happen.  
Suddenly the shrubbery moved again and a feathered wing appeared. We gasped in horror and were just about to hurry the hell outta here when we noticed that the wing wasn't moving.  
It just laid there completely still and lifeless. It took us a moment but then finally realized that the owl was dead.

Right then our life savior stepped out of the shrubbery and brushed some dust from its fur.

It was a young adult male, much older then Shade and nearly three times his size with grey-brown fur, a beige colored mane, purple wings and long crimson red hair plus a neatly trimmed beard in the same color. Furthermore, he looked barely exhausted from the fight and didn't even has any scratches on his muscular body.

Watching him from above I figure that he hadn't noticed us yet.

''Guys let's go,'' Marina urged us in a strained voice, seemingly wanting away from here as quick as possible.

''But he saved us,'' Shade protested, ''We can't just leave without thanking him first.''

''Yes we can. This guy just killed that owl which is totally unnormal for any bat I know. Who knows what this guy might do to us.''

''You are totally overreacting here.''

''Guys, please,'' I hissed at them, ''not so loud. He might hear...Yikes! *the small twig I was leaning against while taking a closer look at the bat just snapped under my weight and fell down to his feet, causing him to look up and spot us in the tree above.

I gulped seeing the fresh blood dripping from his muzzle and the dark menacingly look in his lemon-colored eyes.

He frowned in confusion, noticing me but then suddenly another strange bat, another male appeared and landed beside the other one on the ground.  
This one was much smaller and chubbier with grey-blue fur, a dark green mane, dark blue wings and long indigo colored hair.  
Unlike the other, he hadn't noticed us yet and was hungrily liked his libs at the sight of dead owl in the shrubbery.

He was just about to jump at it when the other bat stopped him by holding his arm out in front of his face. With a quietly displeased growl, the smaller bat turned around but his frown quickly changed into a delighted grin as soon as he noticed us as well.  
Both bats stared at us for a moment and I noticed that they were both banded just like Marina but unlike her, the bands that covered their left wrists were bronze-colored not silver.  
Eventually, the larger bat wiped the blood from his muzzle with the back of his hand and his expression surprisingly changed into a more softer one.

''Pardon my manners,'' he said with a Spanish accent and slightly bowed down before us, ''I'm Goth and this ... is my cousin Throbb.'' He paused and grudgingly gave a slight nod towards the pudgy bat next to him who greeted us as well with a bright smile on his face.

''H-hi...,'' Shade greeted them back, ''Ehm, I'm Shade and these are Vanessa and Marina.  
The Brightwing gasped softly as Shade mentioned our names and looked down fearfully at the two large bats below.  
Before I could ask her what was wrong the two males flew up to us on the branch with a few strong flaps of their huge wings.  
I gulped a bit. Up closer their sizes were much more impressive. Especially Goths.

''We are new to these lands,'' he told us,'' Torn away from our own.

''Oh, us too,'' Shade said, naively lowering his guard in front of the two strangers.

''I see we have much in common.'' Goth smiled and I couldn't help but felt a little uneasy by the way he looked at us three. Like he was hiding something from us.

''All we want is to get back to our home in the south but we cannot read this eh ... northern stars,'' he said pointed up towards the night sky with a troubled look on his face.

I felt I knew what he was talking about. Thanks to Zephyr I could at least now search out some constellation but picking out a single star by its name was still very difficult for me. I hoped Shade or Marina still knew which star we had to follow on our way to hibernaculum because I already forgot which one it was.

''You two can travel with us!'' Shade proposed without thinking twice, ''We are headed south to find my colony.''

''We'd be delighted. And in return allow us to offer our protection,'' Goth said.

Shade nodded smiling. ''It's a deal.''

Suddenly three moanful hoots floated through the night air causing us to freeze on our spot.

''What was that?'' Goth asked, looking around.

''More owls,''Shade explained, ''they are calling for their sentry. They'll come if they don't hear back from him. We should get moving.''  
We all nodded in agreement and got ready to move. Marina was first to jump back into the air, spreading her wings out and hovering over me to grab my hands with her feet.

''What are you doing?'' Goth asked, looking slightly puzzled by the sight of me dangling under the Brightwings feet.

''Well, I don't have any wings and Shade and Marina are not big enough to carry me around otherwise,'' I explained but Goth shook his head.

''That's no safe way of traveling for you Senorita. The risk of either your friend letting you go or you losing your grip by yourself is too high. And we surely don't wish for you to fall to your death, right?''

Why did I get the feeling this might be exactly his intentions? Probably just my imagination.  
Who was I to judge someone I barely knew anything about?!

The tall bat turned to his cousin a sign to come over while Marina landed me back on the branch.

''Throbb here will be so kind to carry you around on his back,'' Goth simply said.

''What? Why me?'' the smaller bat protested but then flinched back by the way Goth was looking at him. ''Uh, ... I mean...si that's no problem. It would be an honor for me to be your mode of transportation.'' He chuckled nervously and gave a short bow before me.

''Ehm, thank you but I don't think that's really necessary,'' I said but Throbb shook his head.

''No, no I insist,'' he said determinedly and I exchange a short glance with Marina, who just shrugged not knowing how to help me with this.  
Knowing we couldn't stay here forever I let out a soft sigh and agreed to ride on Throbbs back during our journey.

''Are you sure about this?'' Marina asked me under her breath.

''Yeah, It will be fine,'' I whispered back even though I wasn't truly sure about this and climbed on the pudge bats back. I barely wrapped my arms around Throbb's neck as he already took off with speed causing me to cling on him more tightly.

''Don't worry Senorita. I'm not gonna drop you,'' he said laughing a little.  
I lose my grip a little but still felt uncertain as we flew through the sky right behind Goth, Marina and Shade.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV**

''OWLS!'' Chinook cried out in alarm as soon as he reached the water tower. Immediately he was covered with dozens of eyes who stared down at him with confusion and fear and a general disturbance broke out among the bats.

He had barely time to catch his breath when Bathsheba approached him on the wooden beam.

''What's this about owls?'' she demanded to know.

''There is a bounty on our heads, and we-,'' Chinook tried to explain but Bathsheba quickly cut him off.

''A bounty? Don't be ridicu-'' But before she could say anything more Frieda already raised her voice towards the colony.

''Silverwings, prepare to evacuate the roost,'' she said with authority and soon after everyone soared up from their roost and followed her into the sky.

''Where should we go?'' Ariel asked with worry and took a fearful look back over her shoulder just to see three owls getting closer to the water tower.

''That building over there,'' Mercury quickly said and nodded towards the sawmill in just a few wing beats away from them.  
There was no proof if it was safe but it was the closest thing to hide inside and without other options, they had no choice but to risk it and flew in.

Unfortunately, they were watched by the red cardinal and the rest of the owl patrol.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

We flew quietly through the forest. Shade at the front talking with Goth while I, Throbb and Marina followed close behind. I still felt uncertain about those two giant bats but as long as I had no proof of them meaning any ham I swore to myself not to judge Goth or Throbb too soon.

However, this didn't mean I trusted them.

A few hours later we came across a large birch tree and Shade suggested to us to stop and roost there for a while.  
Our new ''friends'' didn't seem that tired already but Shade looked like he would fall from the sky  
if we kept going any longer.

Goth didn't say anything against it and just nodded before landing on top of a branch, while Shade and Marina roosted on the branch across.

Throbb flew towards the branch where Goth stood on and passed another one right under Shade and Marina.  
Not wanting to be on the same branch as the two giant bats and rather close to my friends, I jumped off from his back, grabbing the branch with all fours and tried to climb up on it.

''Eh... Senorita may I help you there?'' Throbb asked while watching me but I quickly shook my head.

''No, no. It's fine. ... I got this,'' I said barely convincing myself. Climbing this branch up proved to be much more difficult than I first thought.  
In the end, I hung there like a sloth with my arms and legs wrapped around the wood.  
My cheeks burned red with embarrassment and I didn't dare to look around, knowing they were all watching me.  
Luckily after one more try, I finally managed to lift myself on the right side of the branch.  
There I sat down close to the trunk and avoided the glance of the others.

Suddenly a cold wind swept by, causing me to shiver a little, so I pulled my cloak closer around me to get more warmth.

''Is it always so cold here?'' Throbb asked, shivering as well.

''Just in winter,'' Marina said.

''Winter?'' Throbb looked as if she just asked him a complicated math question or something. Didn't he know what winter was?

''We are migrating,'' Shade explained, finding Throbb's reaction also surprising, ''Every winter we go south to find a warmer place to hibernate.''

''Hibernate?'' Goth asked puzzled.

''A long sleep.''

''How long?''

''Months. That's all we do. Sleep and sleep until it gets warmer.''

''Well, how unusual,'' Goth said, ''Bats that sleep for months on end. What strange customs you have in the north. Where we are from it is warm and sunny all year around. Makes a bat grow to a reasonable size.'' With a chuckle, he opened his wings to demonstrate their enormous size.

''As a prince, I am a magnificent specimen even by my colony standards,'' he said proudly.  
Throbb chuckled at this, then coughed as he almost choked on his own spit.

''How did you end up so far from home?'' Marina asked.

''Oh, eh... The royal guard was not acting with his ears wide open,'' Goth answered, the smile fading from his place and turning into a discomfort frown, ''The daily humans captured us, banded us and brought us here to be imprisoned.'' He clenched his fist at this memory then turned to Marina to see her having a band herself on her wrist.

''I see you were also taking prisoner by those smelly humans seniorita,'' he said.

 _Excuse me._ I thought and stared at him in outrage, but he ignored me.

''No, they did not keep me prisoner,'' Marina said, ''They gave me the band and let me go again, but...''

''They didn't bring you to the artificial jungle?'' Goth asked. Marina shook her head, looking confused.

''What's a jungle?'' Shade asked curiously and flew over to the two giant bats. I assumed he had never heard of some places like this before and Goth seemed to be a little surprised that Shade didn't know about such place but joyfully explained it to him.

''A jungle is an explosion of color. Born in the heat and the sun. We, the Vampyrum Spectrum, live as we choose in our jungle. With the warmth on our wings and our bellies never empty.  
We eat only the most succulent of small birds, the tastiest of lizards and other ... small animals.'' With a bright grin, he leaned down closer to the young Silverwing.

''Wait a minute. You guys eat...meat?'' Marina asked disbelievingly.

''Yeah, I always thought all bats eat bugs like moths or beetles and stuff,'' Shade said looking surprised about it as well.

''No, such things were never on our menu,'' Goth said having a disgusted look on his face.  
It was good to hear that someone else was also not happy about the thoughts of eating insects.  
Though, the fact that those two Vampyrums were meat-eaters made me feel less comfortable around them than before.

Speaking of food. Throbb mumbled something about being hungry and flew off to find himself something to eat. I couldn't help but felt a bit hungry myself but the thought of eating another bug turned it down. Instead, I tried to focus on something else and listen to Goth, who answered all the questions Shade asked him about his life and the jungle.  
Their conversation went on for hours and after a while, I started to feel a little tired.

''Enough about me,'' Goth finally said while crouching on the branch, bringing Shades endless questions to an end, ''What about you?''

''Oh, well,'' Shade began, hanging back on the branch next to Marina, ''We Silverwings live as we choose to too. Like the rule that bats can't look at the sun. Well, I did. Even if the owls didn't like it.''

''Didn't like it? Eh, Shade... they burned down your roost. Remember?'' I said looking up at him, raising an eyebrow.

''Why did your males not safe you?'' Goth asked with a frown.

''They weren't there. They were waiting for us in stonehold. That's where we were getting to migrate to before the owls attacked.'' Shade let out a sigh and flew up on top of the branch he roosted before. ''I hate the owls. Even more than I hate the treaty.''

''Treaty?''

''Basically, the bats were punished for not taking sides in the battle of the birds and the beasts. That's why we have to fly at night.'' Shade sighed again and flew over to a branch above the one where Goth was.

''Hmm... I could bring an army from my species from the south and end this persecution once and for all,'' the Vampyrum said and stood back up again, ''You Shade could be my commander in chief. I think you have the makings of a great warrior.''

Shade was flashed at this compliment and smiled brightly.

''Your father must be very proud.''

Shades smile faded he turned his eyes away with a sigh.

''I...don't have a father,'' he said, '' Cassiel, my dad, disappeared while scouting one night. They say the owls got him.''

Goth flew up to his branch and put a comforting hand on the small bat's shoulder.

''A boy without a father,'' he spoke his voice sounding soft and consoling.  
However, the expression on his face especially the slight grin told something different.  
I couldn't help but felt even more uncomfortable now.  
Looking up I noticed Marina was probably thinking just the same.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

The Birds waited until the last bat vanished through a small crack inside the building.  
Then they dashed down to the roof and picked holes into the wood with their sharp claws and beaks.

The silverwings were terrified, knowing they were trapped. It was only a matter of time until the birds would have found their way into them.  
Frieda knew she had to act fast to save her colony. The owls already managed to tear a hole, big enough for their heads to fit through a little bit more, and they would manage to get in completely.

The room was big and long and luckily the door of the sawmill was wide open. But would they be fast enough to reach it before the owls got them? And what about those human machines that seemed to move all on their own? Huge sharp discs rotating, faster than a bat could flap its wings, moving up and down. Cutting tree trunks without problems.

Flying through that might be the best way to avoid getting caught but also very dangerous.  
Hearing another cracking sound coming from above Frieda knew they had no choice but to move now.

''This way. Keep it tight and be careful,'' she spoke and led her colony down to the woodcutting machines. Without hesitation, the bats followed her.  
They saw the saws and how big and dangerous they were, but they also trusted their leader, hoping she would get them all out of here safety.

Meanwhile, the owls finally managed to get inside as well and immediately began racing after the bats.  
They followed them blindings which caused one of the owls to get knocked out by a log which unexpectedly hit it straight in the face.  
However, this didn't stop the rest to keep hunting the silverwings through the mill.

Another log got thrown down by a machine nearly crashing the bats, but they quickly avoided it.  
Unfortunately, their hunters weren't hit by it as well and Frieda feared they would all get caught if she didn't do something.  
Her gaze went back to the front and towards the razor-sharp saws. The up and down movements weren't that fast and if they were quick enough they might be able to get through without getting cut.  
But it was a high risk. A risk she had to take in order to hopefully save them all.  
In her thoughts, Frieda sent a hurried prayer to Nocturna and dashed towards the first saw.

Bathsheba gasped with horror at what Frieda was doing, but there was no way back. The owls and the cardinal were right behind them. The small red bird smirked confidently, his talons stretched out to grab the next bat he can get. But right as the last Silverwing flew under the saw. The sharp disc swiped down without warning. Gasping in shock the cardinal stopped himself just in time and flew back up to the roof.

The owls finally took notice of the danger and stopped the hunt to get away from the machines. One of the owls miscalculated his ascent and slammed right into the saws.

He let out one last horrific screech before getting cut into pieces. Feathers and blood splashing all over the machine.

What a terrible loss but worse of all the silverwings were gone. There was no sight of any of them inside the building anymore. They must have escaped through the wide open entrance.  
Growling dangerously, one of the owls gave the cardinal a last warning glare before retreating with the rest of his flock. **  
**

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

After few minutes of chatting Throbb finally returned, and we went back on our road.

Shade and Marina flying on top talking to each other and Goth and Throbb right behind with me yet again sitting on the grey-blue Vampyrum's back.

I didn't want to be so close by those meat-eaters but Goth once again insisted that I should not hang on my friend's feet. Also, did he said I could rest a bit on Throbb's back after noticing my tiredness.

I was tired yes, but too uncomfortable with those two around to even think of sleeping.

To make things worse it also started to rain. I could feel my clothing getting instantly soaking wet, so I laid down deeper on Throbb's back and pulled the hood more over my head, trying to hide from the rain as good as I could. Crappy weather.

''Brr, how can it be so cold and-and wet and-and cold?'' Throbb asked, shivering under me.

''We will not have to put up with this much longer,'' I heard Goth saying and wondered what he meant.

''Why don't we just eat them?''

I froze. What did he just say?

''Shh! You idiot, she might hear you,'' Goth snarled at his cousin.

''Nah, I think she is asleep Goth. I didn't hear a sound from her for quite some time.''

I closed my eyes and force myself to breathe calmly like if I was really asleep while feeling Goth checking on me to see if I was sleeping or not.

''Now, can you please tell me why we can't eat these two bats?'' Throbb asked again sounding impatient.

Goth chuckled softly. ''Why eat two now when you can be patient and eat an entire colony?''

Throbb now chuckled as well with malicious delight and I dug my hands deeper into his fur while still acting like I was asleep and not having heard what they just said.

* * *

 **AN: _Yay, I finally managed to write this chapter. I hope you guys like it. Feel free to read and review as always :) ^^_**

 ** _Oh, and before you ask. Goth and Throbb are not brothers in law. Just saying in case you might think I made a mistake here. _**

**_They aren't even related to each other at all in the books._**

 ** _However, I made them cousins for a reason I will not reveal just yet ;) :)_**


	15. Horrible Truth

**Chapter 15: Horrible Truth**

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Later that night, a few miles away from Vanessa and the bats, there was a truck loaded with logs driving up to a gas station.  
As soon as the driver got out of the car, a bat, who was none other than Mercury peaked his head out from under the fabric that covered the logs and checked his surroundings.

''All clear,'' he announced happily for there was no sign of danger before flying back into the woods followed by the rest of the Silverwings.  
They didn't fly too far and soon stopped again by some trees to hold a small meeting about what had happened at the sawmill.

Bathsheba was the first to raise her voice to speak: ''Why would the owls target our colony?'' she asked frowning.

''Well, I heard some flying squirrels say that a Silverwing was on a killing spree,'' Chinook answered, causing the elders to gasp in shock while looking at each other as the rest of the colony started whispering around with agitation and fear.

''I have never heard of bats killing animals,'' said Frieda and the colony slowly calmed back down. ''If the owls believe in this, then their flying in formation and pigeons on night guard makes senses.''

''We should have given up Shade and that girl in the first place,'' said Bathsheba, '' I told you that human will bring nothing but trouble to the colony.''

Another murmur went through the crowd, but Frieda quickly hushed everyone down with a wave of her wings. ''Enough! What's done is done. But I sure doubt that neither Shade nor Vanessa has anything to do with any of this.''

''Really? And what explanation do you have for what happened to us since the human and the runt went missing?''

Before Frieda could answer, Mercury raised his voice.  
''Dawn is coming, Frieda. Where do we go now?'' he said warningly while scanning the horizon.  
The eastern sky was indeed getting lighter and the first birds began to sing the first tones of the morning chorus.

''We must continue on as scheduled,'' indicated Bathsheba with a grin on her face but Frieda shook her head.

''With the owls on our heels it may not be safe to stay on the direct path,'' she said.

The pudgy elder snarled in annoyance and pointed her claw at the chief elder.  
''We have already suffered enough from your rash decisions. We must go back to our route!''

The colony muttered in agreement and Frieda could sense their trust in her fading. She knew she had to agree with Bathsheba as well and so gave out a defeated sigh.

''Alright,'' she said then raised her voice, ''Prepare to head to the towers of fire.''

Ariel looked quite worrisome to her leader while Bathsheba just grinned with satisfaction.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

I must have fallen asleep.  
The first thing I noticed after opening my eyes was that the rain had stopped and my clothes were almost dry again as well the fur I was lying upon.

... Wait! ... fur?

Slightly confused I took a looked around and saw Shade and Marina flying ahead with a much larger bat flying behind them together with another one on whose back I was sitting on.  
It took me a moment but then I recognized them both as the two meat-eating bats Goth and Throbb from the jungle down south and let out a soft sigh with relief, thinking everything was okay.  
But wait! If really everything was alright, then why did I get such a warning like feeling whenever I looked at those two Vampyrums? Was I imagine things again?

... No. I wasn't.

With shock, I remember Goth and Throbb's conversation about eating Shade's colony but was this truth? Did I really hear them say this or did my tired mind just made that up?  
I hoped so, but what if it was the truth?

''I think we've reached the southern valley,'' I heard Marina saying up front and the four bats flew up higher to check our surroundings.

For me, this part of the forest didn't look much different from the one we were in before. There might have been more pine trees but apart from that ...  
I would be so lost without these bats. There was no way I could find my way through the forest all on my own nor could I read the stars to guide me.  
Speaking of stars. Where we still following the star on Shades map? Hard to tell, because the sky was already starting to get brighter with the stars fading away.

''How are we ever going to find your colony Shade?'' Marina sighed hopelessly.

''You know,'' Goth suggested, ''If you called up your sound map, together we could try to figure out where your colony is.''

I gasped softly and looked over at Shade, hoping he won't actually listen to him but to my and Marinas horror he closed his eyes tightly and began to concentrate.

''Focus Shade,'' Goth instructed him softly.

''I-I see...a countryside,'' Shade said struggling a little, ''I see cities, cathedrals ... ugh ... now I see... towers. They are consumed by flames and there are lines of fires shooting in and out of them.''

Unable to say more Shade opened his eyes back up again and dropped down in exhaustion but quickly caught himself again.

Goth smiled ''Hm, you have given us something to work with Shade,'' he said slyly then turned his head around and started sniffing. Throbb did the same and looked back at his cousin with a dark grin on his face.

''Uh- please excuse us,'' Goth asked gentlemanly, ''We hear the lunch special here is ... excellent.''

And with that he and Throbb dove back down into the woods but not without dropping me off on the closest tree first.  
Shade and Marina landed down beside me and as soon as the two larger bats were out of sight the young Brightwing shoved her face angrily into the Silverwings.

''How could you just blurt out your sound map like that?'' she asked furiously.

''You know, I think maybe you were on that island so long you don't know how to trust a friend,'' he returned in annoyance.

''Better friendless than clueless.''

Shade just huffed and dove back down into the forest not caring if we followed him or not.  
Marina pouted and shook her head while watching him go.

''Uh, maybe we should go after him,'' I softly suggested just to have the Brightwing's glare now turned on me.

''Say, do you trust those two meat-eaters.''

''Uhm,...I uh...''

''Well, yes or no? Because I say we should ditch them and that as soon as possible.''

I nodded knowing she was right after what I overheard earlier but before I could tell her about it, Marina didn't seem to want to wait for my answer any longer and instead jumped up and instructed me to grab her feet then flew down into the forest as well.

* * *

After a short hunting trip, we all met again by an old beech tree and spend the day in an abandoned squirrel den. It was a little cramped with all five of us inside but not too uncomfortable as well. Plus our body heat quickly warmed up the place from the cold wind coming from outside.

The next evening I woke up with a yawn and stretched myself in order to get the sleep out of my body.  
Looking around I saw my friends still sleeping but also found someone missing.  
Throbb was still there, snoring loudly in a corner but there was no sign of his cousin anywhere which made me wonder if he perhaps went out for breakfast already. In this case, I might as well waited until he returned, not wanting to accidentally stumble across him while he was eating his prey.  
Then again... It wasn't like I haven't seen carnivorous animals eating before. ... Okay, this was mostly on television and not in real life but hey it's nature.

Still, I couldn't help but felt endangered with those two Vampyrum bats around.  
The words of their conversation last night came back to my mind but I didn't want jump to conclusions so easily. I might have misheard something or Goth had known I wasn't really asleep and made a joke just to scare me or something. A sick joke however but after telling us what he had experienced before I came to the conclusion that he most likely wasn't so well-disposed towards humans at all. In this case, it would make sense if he wanted to scare me.

Yeah, at least that might be something Shade would tell me. There was no way he would agree on separating from the two Vampyrums just because of some presumptions.  
I needed proof.

But that for later. Right now I was in need of something else. Something more important. A toilet.

Obviously, I couldn't go here, so I stepped out of the den and carefully climbed down the tree.  
I went very slowly and highly concentrated, trying to ignore my beating heart and shaking limbs while cursing my high anxiety in my mind.  
It took me a while but then I finally made it down to the roots and jumped onto the grass.  
There I hurried over to the next bush and did my business. Afterward, I washed my hands in a small puddle close by and looked for something to eat.

''Aren't here any blueberries around?'' I asked myself while searching but unfortunately, there seemed to be no edible fruits or berries for me around.  
All I did find was a fat white grub behind a tall blade of grass, crawling over the ground in search of some leaves to eat. ''No way,'' I said in disgust.  
I might have been hungry but not that hungry to eat something like that, so I let the grub be and continued my way through the forest.  
I tried to stay close to the beech tree where the others still slept but after a while, I looked around and ... couldn't find it anymore.

 _Oh, no._ I thought with despair. I was so focused on seeking some food that I didn't check if the said tree was still nearby. Instead, I was now surrounded by all kind of different trees and no beech tree.  
I gulped and tried to find my way back, thinking I shouldn't have gone too far away from it.  
Though, was this the right way to get back to the others or should I've taken a left by that maple tree over there? Or a right by the two pine trees? Or rather...? Argh! How could I've been so stupid and not watch where I was going. Now I was lost.

With a sigh, I sat down on a leave and thought about my next steps. I could scream for help and hope the others hear me but in case they were just around the next corner I did not. Not wanting to embarrass myself. Then again, doing nothing wouldn't help me either.  
It was driving me to despair.

Suddenly I heard some rustling and turned around but saw nothing. With tense, I listened again but everything was quiet. Too quiet.  
''Alright, congratulations Vanessa you just won the prize of the most stupid decision ever:  
Going for a lone walk through a forest in the middle of the night.'' I could've just slapped myself.

But let's keep our shirts on. Right now I seemed safe. That was good.  
Question was: For how long?  
Instead of staying here and talking loudly to myself and probably attracting the attention of possible predators I stood back up and looked for a safe spot to hide. After that, I could still wonder about how to contact my friends about my whereabouts.

Leaves rustled again and I slowly began to feel like something was watching me.  
I hurried my steps but the rustling grew louder and closer. Also, were that wings flapping I heard?  
I went faster, hoping to get rid of my haunter. But the sound of something behind me got closer and closer.  
Eventually, I started to run. This was probably a bad idea, but I was scared and not in the mood of thinking about something else to do right now. I just run and run, stumbled over some twigs and leaves and kept running. I didn't even dare to look behind me, I just kept running as far as my legs would take me and... almost fell into a river.

Like out of nowhere my path suddenly stopped and the earthy ground switched with sparkling wet water. Unfortunately, I run with such élan that I was unable to break before stumbling over the bank. Luckily, something caught me by my cloak and roughly pulled me back just on time.

''Ouch!'' I exclaimed as my butt hardly hit the ground.

Hearing amused chuckling I turned around and saw Goth towering over me with a grin on his face.

''Did you try to go for an evening swim señorita?'' He asked jokingly.

I shook my head. ''N-no I was just ... ehm ...''

''Yes?'' Goth seemed to be interested to know why I nearly dumped into the river, but he couldn't fool me. I knew by his expression that he knew it was most likely him I had been running away from earlier but I stayed silent.  
The Vampyrum kept staring at me for a moment, waiting for an answer then just shrugged.

''Whatever, I think you should go back now. Your friends are looking for you,'' he said and pointed with his thumb claw over his shoulder  
Nodding slightly I got back up on my feet and walked past him into the said direction.  
I could feel his gaze upon me but I did not dare to turn around and instead kept walking silently straight ahead.

I didn't know if he was following me or if I even walked into the right direction but when I stepped through a fern frond which crossed my way I finally saw my two bat friends again.

''Vanessa!'' Shade exclaimed as soon as he spotted me,''Where have you been. Marina and I were looking all over for you.''  
He swooped down and landed before me on the ground with the young Brightwing beside him.

''You can be such a pain you know,'' she said looking at me reproachfully.

''Sorry guys, I needed to stretch my legs a bit and ... got a bit lost but now I'm back.''

''Maybe next time you don't walk too far away from us,'' Shade suggested and smiled a bit.

I nodded, smiling back. ''Sure.''

''Alright, then,'' said Marina, ''Let's grab some food and then meet our two meat-eater friends back here in an hour.

''Alright.''

''I'll wait for you here then,'' I said.

''Should I take you back into the squirrel den then?''

''Sure.''

Shade got airborne and grabbed my hands with his feet to carry me back up to where we used to sleep the day before. Then he flew back out and joined Marina for a quick hunting trip while I waited for them to return.

* * *

A few hours later we continued our journey until we decide to take another short break by some trees.

Shade happily chattered a bit with the two giant bats, asking them more questions about their homeland and everything while Throbb tried to clean Goth's band by blowing air on it and rubbing it with the back of his winged arm.

''These bands! They are hard to clean and twice as hard to keep shiny,'' he complained with a frown obviously not feeling happy of playing the servant for his cousin.

The moon was already high up into the sky, but at least we managed to get to a certain extent closer to Hibernaculum.  
Still, how much longer until we would finally get there? A few nights? Longer?  
I just hoped we would reach it before the weather got too cold to survive outside.  
Especially for me.

''Why do you think the human's band bats anyway?'' Shade asked and I couldn't help but felt a bit hurt because I told him countless time why we did that. Then again he might just want to hear Goth and Throbb's opinion about this. So I stayed silent and waited for them to respond, feeling quite curious about what they may have to say about it just to hear a soft growl escaping Goth's throat.

''To imprison us,'' he said, his deep hate for my kind clearly written on his face. ''So they can steal the secret of our night vision.'' He violently tried to pull his band off but it didn't even move an inch, causing him to roar in irritation and to bite down on the metal.  
Still, the band stayed stuck on his arm as if it was a part of himself.

 _If he keeps on doing that he will probably break a tooth,_ I thought while watching him.

''Not all humans are that bad,'' Marina said, taking a short glance over at me, ''Maybe the band means something good.''

Goth stopped chewing on his band and glances upon her, his eyebrow raised with disinterest.  
''Huh, such as?''

''I don't know ... Something special.''

The Vampyrum chuckled and rolled his eyes in amusement. ''Something special,'' he repeated mockingly, ''How amusing senorita.''

Marina looked pretty offended by his words and turned away from Goth with a huff while I glared down on him angrily. ''Hey, no need to be mean. She was just saying her opinion.''

Goth looked at me unperturbed.  
''Oh, did she? And what do you wish to tell me with this? Perhaps that this is the truth or something?''

''Ehm, no. But just because you have a different opinion about it, it doesn't mean hers is total nonsense. It might sound absurd but maybe there really is something the bands are connected with,'' I said remembering Frieda's words to me and Shade back in the echo chamber.  
Unfortunately, Goth did not seem to listen to any word I've just said.

''Whatever you say señorita,'' he said and gave out a bored yawn.

 _Oh, why do I even bother?!_ I thought frowning at him. Turning away I saw Marina lifting off into the forest, probably wanting to be away from Goth for a while.  
I sighted and wanted to leave as well. ''Come on Shade, let's follow her and see if she's alright.''  
The Silverwing nodded and picked me up by my hands before following Marina but not without giving Goth and his cousin an apologizing shrug first.

* * *

 **~Goth's POV ~**

 _Caradura._ With a frown, I watched that so-called human and the runty Silverwing flying after their friend. ''Those chicas are starting to annoy me.''

Throbb chuckled darkly. ''I know a way how to get rid of them both.''

I shook my head. ''Not now.'' The time wasn't ready. Throbb didn't look so keen having to wait but I knew acting too soon wouldn't best decision. Suddenly we heard a pair of wings flapping close by and I noticed Throbb looking with eager into the sky.

''Now?'' He asks, hungrily licking his lips and getting ready to fly but I quickly shoved him away by pushing my wing in his way.

''Claws off! It's mine.'' I snarled at him and quickly soared after my prey.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

''Hey, wait!'' Shade and I quickly managed to catch up on Marina, but she simply ignored us and kept flying ahead without looking back.  
Shade clicked his tongue in annoyance and sped up a bit to get closer to her.  
''What's your problem?'' he asked just to earn a glare from the Brightwing.

''You agree with everything Goth says. He is not as nice as you think.''

''You are just mad, 'cause Goth told you your band doesn't mean you're special.''

''Shade!'' I glared upon him, not liking the scornful tone in his voice.''

''Now, seriously,'' he said not reacting to me, ''I don't understand why you are so sore about this.''

''Oh, so you do agree with him and think the bands are nothing but stupid pieces of metal, the humans stick on bats just to mark them?!''

''...well, it does sound logical.''

Marina huffed and shook her head. ''Impossible.''

''Now, come on. I didn't say the bands were bad.''

''You know if that's the truth then why should I even bother trying to find the Silverwings and meet Frieda?''

''Beats me,'' Shade scoffed.

Marina glared at him again. ''Know what? I've had it. I'm going back to the island. I wish I had never met you.''

''Well,'' Shade retorted, ''if you are going to be all negative then the sooner you leave the better.''

I tried to say something, seeing the hurt look in Marina's eyes, but she already flew off before I could even open my mouth. ''Did you have to do that?'' I asked, looking back up on Shade.''

''Hey, it was her decision to go. What else should I have done? Tie her up and bind her to my back?''

I kept glaring at him. ''That's not what I mean,'' I said.

He sighed. ''Listen, I'm disappointed too, that she left. I really thought she was our friend.''

''She is our friend. Though I don't think Goth and Throbb are.''

Shade groaned in annoyance. ''Seriously? There is nothing wrong with those two. Sure they eat meat and are much bigger and more dangerous looking like other bats but think about it. Goth and Throbb could protect the colony and us while we are on our way to Hibernaculum. Remember Vanessa, the owls closed the sky for all bats. Without those Vampyrums we would stand no chance against them.''

''True but...''

''See. Now come on. Let's go back to them before they start wondering where we are.''  
I didn't want to but since I didn't have another option left, I let him carry me back to our ''friends'' and wondered if Marina was going to be alright.

* * *

As we arrived, I saw Goth pushing something under a shrubbery with his foot and wiped his muzzle clean. I assumed he went hunting and was glad that he was nice enough to hide the carcass from our eyes.

''Hola!'' He greeted us as we landed before him on the ground, ''Where is Marina?''

''She decided to go back to her island,'' Shade said sighing a bit.

''Oh,'' said Goth softly and looked into the distance, ''There are owls about, and we promised to protect you three.'' He turned to his cousin. ''Throbb! Go find Marina and eh...escort her. It is the least we can do to repay her.''

Throbb grinned sinisterly and nodded before leaving on the spot.  
I squinted my eyes a bit, finding his behavior a little strange.

''Now, why not call up your sound map again?'' Goth suggested, looking down on Shade, ''See if we can narrow in on your colony.''

For some reason, I did not like the tone in his voice. It sounded like he was planning something. Something bad. Glancing at Shade I noticed that he seemed to sense some foreboding as well judging his worried and confused expression.  
Just then I noticed the smell. The intensive scent ... of iron.  
Wondering where it was coming from I looked around until my eyes focused onto the shrubbery and I remembered watching Goth hiding something under there.

The Vampyrum himself, however, did not seem to notice our worriedness and walked slowly around, mumbling a bit to himself. One edge of his curled wing got stuck on a blade of grass. Unaware he pulled it free, just to reveal the torn wing of a dead Brightwing.

All colors immediately vanished my face as I stared down on it with complete disbelieve.

Trying my best to stay calm I eagerly tucked on Shade's wing. The Silverwing seemed to be a little annoyed about this at first but when he saw what was lying under the bushes he couldn't help but let out a sharp horrified gasp at what he saw. I quickly pressed my hand on his mouth to prevent him from screaming and forced my eyes away from the corpse and back on Goth, just realized what was going on.  
 _They are cannibals. They are freaking cannibals!_

''Something wrong, amigos?'' Goth turned to us with a smirk on his face. ''You both look ... a little pale.''

''Uhhh- yeah...uhh... calling up the sound map is...uhh...exhausting,'' I said smiling nervously while thinking about a plan to get me and Shade the hell out of there. Goths approaching shadow didn't help much for that matter. Shade, however, nodded at my words and hopped a little away from him, pulling me with him.

''Yeah, I'm gonna go to the stream for water.'' He was just about to grab my hands again with his feet as Goth stepped between us.

''Ah, but then why should señorita Vanessa go with you, amigo? Wouldn't it be quicker if you flew to the stream without her?''

 _Shit!_ I thought with fear running down on my spine. He must've sensed that we were about to flee or something. ''Ehm...well, I'll just go with him in case...he faints or something,'' I said hoping Goth would buy that and let us go but he didn't.

''In that case wouldn't it be better if I accompany you as well?'' he asked with a grin and I felt my heart drop down to my stomach.

''Uhh- ehm, ... sure why not.'' I said chuckling fearfully.  
Goth kept grinning down at us deviously and I could see in his eyes that he knew we were lying.  
''Should we go now or not? I thought you wanted to go to the stream for a drink?'' he asked acting friendly.

''O-of course it's just...,'' I gulped and thought about a plan for us to escape. Unfortunately, my brain didn't come up with any useful ideas.

''Just what?'' Goth asked.

''Oh, you know. I just thought maybe someone should stand back and ... uh ... wait in case Throbb returns or something.''

The Vampyrum raised an eyebrow at my suggestion. ''Why? The stream is right around that corner.''

''Sure, but ... uh ... you know since it isn't that far. It isn't really necessary for you to come along. We will give you call if something happens,'' Shade said as he went airborne and grabbed my hands with his feet.

''We will make it quick,'' I said, smiling falsely at Goth and slightly squeezed Shade's ankle to urge him to hurry. At first, it seemed like the Vampyrum wanted to insist in escorting us but to our luck, he just nodded and let us go without a word.  
Shade fluttered away in idle speed until we were out of sight and then ... dashed off as if stung by an adder and with me hanging on to him for dear life. Both of us not looking back even once.

* * *

Eventually, Shade had to stop on the nearest tree branch in order to catch his breath from flying so fast. ''I ... I can't believe it,'' he panted, the shock still stuck on his face, ''Goth, he ... they...''

''I know,'' I said not feeling better myself. ''We can freak out later for all I care. But for now we need to find Marina. Remember Goth send Throbb after her.''

Shade looked at me shaking. ''Vanessa, t-that bat ... it...it's wing ... that was a Brightwing.''

''I know, but it wasn't Marina. Its color was completely different.''  
Shade thought about it then nodded finally calming down. ''Alright, then let's go and find her.''

We continued to fly north, hoping to be on the right track to catch up with Marina before Throbb did and eventually spotted her flying around, just a few wingbeats ahead.  
Shade was about to dash towards her when I saw Goth's cousin flying over to Marina.  
''Shade!'' I gasped, pointing ahead.''

''Dang it!''

''We have to do something,'' I said, watching Throbb blocking Marina's path with a hungry look in his eyes.  
Shade rushed to the closest tree and set me down on a branch. ''Wait here, I've got an idea,'' he said and left before I could even get a chance to ask what he was planning. Hiding behind leaves I watched Shade flying over to Throbb and Marina. Just in time to stop the chubby Vampyrum from biting the head off of our friend.

''Throbb!''

"Huh?" Caught off guard, the carnivorous bat stopped in his actions and blinked a bit as he noticed the Silverwing.

''Shade!'' Marina exclaimed, sounding just as surprised as Throbb.

The young male casually flew over to them, as if nothing was wrong. ''Oh, hello Marina,'' he greeted her desultorily as if he hadn't expected to see her. ''Excuse me, but I'm here to speak to my good friend Throbb.''

The giant meat-eater tilted his head in confusion, ''huh?'' was all he said, but he followed Shade anyways to the nearest tree not too far from where I was with Marina following them as well.

''Great news Throbb!'' Shade proclaimed, facing the giant bat. ''My colony just showed up. Goth sent me to get you.''  
Marina seemed utterly perplexed. ''The Silverwings are here?'' she asked crouching down on the branch above.

Shade smirked, ''Ah yes. Thousands of them,'' he replied then frowned at her in annoyance. ''Hey, I thought you were heading back to the island. You should get going.''

Feeling offended Marina stood back up and threw a hateful glare at him.  
''I was happier when it was just me anyway,'' she snapped and flew off.

''Finally,'' I heard Shade say after Marina had left, ''Goth told me that we will celebrate with a feast once she was gone. Let's go! He's waiting!'' Shade took off with a joyful looking spectral bat right behind him.

''Excellente ...'' Throbb chuckled and overtook Shade in order to get back to Goth as fast as possible not realizing that the Silverwing stopped accompanying and instead flew back to where I was to pick me up and hurry after Marina.

* * *

 **~Goth's POV ~**

After finishing my delicious meal of bat meat I flew a bit around and eventually landed on the stump of a cut-down tree and licked the dried blood from my claws while patiently waiting for the others to return. It didn't take long until I heard wings flapping and I lazily looked up to see mi primo landing in front of me with a dumb grin on his face.

''Where's the colony? I'm starving!''

''Somewhere in the valley, I suspect,'' I replied with shrug, ''Where are Shade and Vanessa?''

Throbb blinked in confusion. ''Huh? Uh, I don't know where she is but Shade is right behind m-...'' He turned around and saw nothing but trees. He blinked dumbfounded and stuttered, ''But-but-but ... he said that you ... that the Silverwings ... a feast!''

I gave out a slow sigh and walked up to my useless cousin. Sometimes I really couldn't believe I was related to that nuisance. ''How could you be tricked by such an inferior species?'' I asked. ''Your brain is in your stomach!'' I raised my claw in order to strike him for his stupidly.

Throbb cowered before me and quickly stammered, ''He-he can't be far! If we split up, we can...''

I laughed darkly at his idea and lowered my claw before leaned over him with a cruel smirk on my face. ''Unless your brain and your stomach have forgotten, Shade gave me the directions to the towers of fire.''

''Ahhh…'' Throbb chuckled softly before his smile faded, ''Oh…''

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

''Hey! Wait up!''

''Marina!''

The Brightwing looked over her shoulder to see us both struggling to follow her. I feard that she would speed up to get rid of us but fortunately, she stopped instead and circled in place waiting for Shade to catch up.

''I'm sorry for earlier,'' he panted, ''You were right. Goth and Throbb don't just eat meat. They eat bats!''

Her eyes widen in shock hearing this. ''But your colony! You said...''

''That was just a trick to get Throbb away from you,'' I explained, ''Goth send him to kill you.''

Marina looked pale, ''No wonder he had that hungrily look in his eyes.'' She shivered a bit.

''Come one, let's get away before they start following our trace,'' Shade said and I totally agreed with him but then Marina gave out a sharp gasp stopped in midflight as if she just remembered something very important.

''The colony! Guys, Goth knows about the towers of fire!''

My eyes widened in shock realizing what that meant while Shade froze completely.

''No,'' he gasped, ''Oh no...no!''

* * *

 **AN: _There you go, a fresh new chapter ^^. I was hoping I could finish it at the end of last year but *shrugs* Oh well, at least it's here now._**

 ** _Hope you will enjoy it. Feel free to read and review. :)_**


	16. Orestes

**Chapter 16: Orestes**

* * *

''Hurry! We have to find my colony before Goth and Throbb do!'' Shade cried out, his voice filled with panic while flapping his wings as fast as he could, ''They'll all be eaten! It will all be my fault.''

''But we don't even know where the fire towers are!'' Marina said, trying to reason with him. She was clearly worried about the Silverwings as much as I was. Though, we couldn't just run off into the blue without knowing where we needed to go at all.

''Try your sound map again,'' she then suggested and Shade landed down on a nearby branch together with me and Marina. He closed his eyes and called up his sound map. He frowned, concentrating hard to see the needed information while placing a claw on his head. Just seconds later he reopened his eyes.

''Now, did you see anything new?'' Marina asked frantically,''Where there mountains? A river maybe?''

''There were these other giant towers that led along the cut line,'' Shade said, ''You know those places where the humans steal all the trees.''

''Do you mean a road or something?'' I asked, kinda confused at what he was talking about.

''Uh, I guess...'' Shade said, obviously not getting what I was talking about either.

''Well, whatever it is. It shouldn't be too hard to find. Let's go!'' Marina said and plunged herself back into the air without waiting for a response. To my surprise, she grabbed my hands with her own feet this time instead of letting Shade carry me around like usual.  
The Silverwing seemed a bit perplexed about this too but didn't bother to say anything so I didn't say anything as well.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Just a few miles away from Vanessa and her two bat friends, a young adolescent great-horned owl covered with dark brown feathers on his body and long red feathers on his head, stood in front of a cobweb watching it curiously.  
Suddenly a small green spider crawled over the web towards the center and the young male, filled with fascination just by looking at the arachnid, couldn't help himself but gently touched the web a bit with the tip of his wing to see what would happen. As a result, the web started to shake and startled the spider, causing it to jump straight onto the owl's face without a warning.

Screaming in fear the young owl stumbled backward from the low branch he stood on and fell down onto his back. Luckily he didn't get hurt and quickly got back up again and shook his head to get the spider off of his beak. Right then he heard laughing and turned around to see two owl soldiers pointing and laughing at him watching what happened.  
Feeling embarrassed the young male looked down at his feet just as another owl flew down to them on top of the stump of a tree.  
Noticing it was no other than General Brutus himself, the laughing of the two owls quickly died down.

''Lieutenant Atlas, report,'' the general commanded

One of the owls, another male with white feathers, dark-colored wings and a black Fu Manchu-styled mustache over his beak stepped forward. ''General Brutus, we have a colony of Greywings pinned down in the west, but still no sign of the Silverwings.''

Brutus nodded, ''Alright, then take two scouts and survey the eastern perimeter.''

''Yes sir,'' Atlas bowed his head towards his general and was just about to leave when Brutus stopped him.

''Oh, and take Orestes with you,'' he said.

The young male looked up in shock at the mention of his name while Atlas seemed unsure what to say about this. ''But sir, ...I uhh...''

''That's an order!'' Brutus commanded sternly.

''But father!'' Orestes protested, ''I can't go.''

''Oh really?'' The general turned to his son, slightly glaring at him, ''Why?''

''I'm not finished observing this arachnid,'' the young one tried to explain and pointed at the spider he encountered earlier and which was now hanging down from a thread right next to him.

''We're at war, son! Stop acting like a nervous pigeon and do your duty!'' Brutus growled, his patience with his son slowly running low.

''But-...but my wing still aches from yesterday's maneuvers!'' Orestes said, holding his left wing like he was still in pain with it.

Brutus rolled his eyes and then threw his head back in agitation, ''Oh for the love of Phoenix!'' he exclaimed, ''What's next? Beak rot?!''

''Father…please!'' Orestes pleaded.

''Fine!'' Brutus growled. "Go play with your insects then!"

Atlas couldn't help but chuckle by those words. But he quickly shut himself up again when noticing his commander glaring at him.  
With a deep sigh, Orestes turned around and walked away while Brutus and his soldiers flew off to continue scouting the forest.

* * *

 **~Goth's POV ~**

My initial confidence waned the longer we flew through this stupid forest and eventually I decided for a shortstop on a small clearing.  
Immediately Throbb looked around for food under a rock while I tried to figure out if we were at least somewhat close to those so-called fire towers the runt had talked about earlier but it seemed we were lost.  
I growled angrily as a moth fluttered past me and looked up into the sky trying to orientate myself but that was impossible. Those sparkling dots in the sky were nothing like the once at home. Trying to make sense of them was just a complete waste of time and only exasperated me more.

''Argh! I cannot understand these northern stars! There is no order to their constellations! I am sick of them!'' I said with disgust and clenched my fists tightly together while still looking up into the sky.

Throbb swallowed the last bit of the tail of a mouse he just caught a few seconds ago, ''Sick of the stars? Try eating these scrawny mice''

''Why not stop?'' I asked feeling annoyed.

''Because you can't eat just one!'' Throbb replied and belched loudly in my direction. ''Just try, it's impossible.''

The grin on his face quickly disappeared as I roughly grabbed a fistful of his fur beneath his throat.  
''If you weren't my primo, I would have eaten you a week ago,'' I said, glaring at him warningly, ''Then at least one of us would have enough energy to make it back to our beloved jungle.''

Throbb chuckled nervously and averted his eyes, ''Yeah, maybe I'll just go get some more mice…''

''Nevermind the mice,'' I let go of Throbb and let him drop on the ground, ''Soon you will feast on silverwings, mi amigo. That little show off Shade told me about his colony's next stop. Fire towers.''

''But-...how will we find them?''

Throbbs question was valid but then I looked ahead and grinned with satisfaction.  
''Zotz helps those who help themselves.'' I chuckled a bit and pointed into the direction behind my cousin who then turned around to see a large area without trees. Instead, there was a long empty path with strange poles constructed by humans and connected to each other which lead towards a large glowing area in the distance.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, Mercury flew over to Frieda's side, having noticed the exhausting running through almost every bat in the colony from their nonstop flight.  
''Frieda,'' he said with concern, ''even the stronger fliers are beginning to tire. We need to roost.''

The elder knew well about her colonies suffering and wished she could stop and rest her tired old bones as well, but she was also aware of any possible danger. ''An unknown refuge could spell certain doom. We will have to wait to roost until we get to the fire towers.''

Mercury nodded, trusting her judgment and continued to fly by her side with the rest of the Silverwings huffing and puffing behind them.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

We kept flying around for quite a while but the so-called fire towers were still nowhere in sight.

''Maybe I was wrong?'' Shade said, looking quite crestfallen and I too was beginning to lose hope. Just then I notice something below us in the fog and as it cleared out I saw a long road with a line of utility poles. With a gasp, I realized what that meant.

''Hey guys, over there!'' I called out and pointed down towards the road with my foot and heard them both sighing in relief as they spotted it as well.

''That must be it. Let's go!'' Marina said. She was just about to speed up a little when a sudden shriek of distressed hit us unexpectedly.

''What the...?'' I looked around, trying to figure out what was going on.

''Help! Help!''

''Somebody's in trouble!'' Marina gasped, ''We should check it out.''

I looked up and saw Shade frowning at us. ''That sounded like a bird,'' he said and turned his face away in disgust.  
Obviously not happy with his reaction Marina let out a huff and grabbed my hands a bit tighter before diving back down into the forest leaving Shade behind.

''Hey! Hang on...'' the Silverwing called out and hurried after us.

Soon after we reached the source of the terrified cries and found a young horned-owl all tangled up in a net set up by my kind.  
I felt bad for the bird for getting caught into that trap that hung there between two trees and wondered how we could help him get back out.

Struggling desperately the owl turned around as much as he could and eventually notices us.  
He looked at us pleadingly and begged for assistance, ''Help, I'm strangling here. Please,! I never hurt a bat in all my life. I'm practically a vegetarian!''

''Liar!'' Shade snapped and pointed at the poor bird, causing him to flinch back.

''Shade,'' Marina hushed him but the Silverwing just huffed and roosted upside down on one of the strings which bound the net to the trees.

''Come on, we have to help,'' I said trying to reason with Shade. ''Who knows if that's a poachers net? He might die if we leave him here like that.''

The young owl gasp in fear of hearing this.

Shade scoffed, ''So? Who cares?! He's an owl.''

Hearing this the owl shut his eyes and trembled a bit like he was about to cry or something.

''Do you seriously want to leave him to his fate just because he is an owl?!'' I asked glaring at Shade.

Marina was also upset with Shade's attitude and frowned at him as well. ''Nice to see Zephyr's lesson with the pigeon had an impact on you.''

''Lesson?'' he asked.

''You know, never underestimate the power of a kind act, even towards one's enemy.''

The Silverwing looked away, grumbling a bit to himself and crossed his arms before his chest.  
I shook my head watching him then turned to Marina, wondering if she had an idea on how we could free the owl.

''Hey...,'' she suddenly said, ''This is the same kind of net the humans used when they banded me!''

''It is?'' I asked looking at her.

She nodded. ''Yeah! All we need to do is spread it open.''

''Sounds good but how should we do that?''

Marina fluttered around, studying the net a bit more. ''That's it.'' she finally said and pointed at the strings, ''You grab one of those as hard as you can and I pull by holding you by the legs.''

''Eh, okay,'' I said, though not quite liking the idea of dangling upside down in the air.

The Brightwing first landed me on a branch, so I could have my hands free and then grabbed my feet with her own and flew back to the net. I gulped, trying my best to stay calm and focused on grabbing a string on the bottom of the net while also hoping that Marina wouldn't let go of me.  
To my delight, Shade decided to help after all and started to pull the other string with his feet.

We tug on it as hard as we could but the net just stretched and stretched, not opening even one bit.  
 _This isn't going to work._ I thought with my hands starting to hurt a little.

''Are you sure you know what you are-'' the young owl began to say just when suddenly Shade I let go of the strings, causing the bird to get shot out from the net like a slingshot, ''DOOOOIIINNNGGGG!'' He did a few backflips through the air until he crash-landed on a tree and lost consciousness on a branch.

 _Ouch!_ That must have hurt.

We quickly flew over to see if the owl was alright and landed in front of him on the branch.  
Shade tore off of a twig and began poking the bird with it.

''What are you doing?'' I asked looking at him with displeasure.

''I'm just checking to see if he's okay,'' Shade said.

''Not like that! You...'' Just then I hear a moan and turned around to see the owl blinking his eyes open. I smiled watching him wake up but then got confused when he let out a gasp with his eyes widened in fear.

''Hey, it's okay we are not...'' The sudden sound of wings rustling right behind us froze the blood in my veins. Slowly me and my friends turned around just to see three adult owl soldiers glaring down on us from a higher branch.  
Shade chuckled nervously, still pointing his twig at the young owl. This certainly did not make a good impression.

''Eh, this is not what it looks like,'' I said trying to save the situation but I knew for sure. We were doomed.

* * *

As expected the owls captured us and brought us to a clearing in a different part of the forest.  
There we were held captive by two more owls, one of them being no other than General Brutus himself.

''You again lawbreakers?'' he growled while staring down on me and Shade then looked at Marina.  
''I see you've brought your friend,'' he said while the Brightwing looked back at us worriedly. ''You don't quit do you?!''

''We didn't do anything!'' Shade protested, ''We were trying to help this runty owl!'' He pointed at the smaller owl, who stood uncomfortably next to the General.

''That ''runty'' owl is my son, Orestes!'' Brutus said angrily.

Now that he said it I finally noticed that the owl we saved had the same striped markings on his wings like the General but besides that, there didn't seem to be much resemblance between the two of them.  
Just then a small green spider lowered itself down right next to Orestes, who shrieked out in alarm as soon as he saw it.  
I pressed my lips tight together, trying my best not to giggle at the scene.

''We stopped to help him!'' Marina retorted, trying to reason with Brutus, ''He was caught in a trap-''

''Enough Brightwing!'' he thundered, interrupting her and spread out his wings. ''You'll soon regret you ever joined up with these-these... pipe-sized, owl killing barbarians.''  
 _  
Say what?_

''Barbarians?'' Shade asked disbelieving and pointed at Brutus. ''You burnt down Tree Haven! And we're not killing owls, Goth and Throbb are! They're giant bats from the jungle down south!''

Obviously not believing his words the owl General rolled his giant yellow eyes with a smirk. ''Oh, yes,'' he said sarcastically, ''The giant meat-eating bats.''

''Actually, they're cannibals,'' Shade said.

''So, now they're cannibals,'' Brutus said, playing along.

I frowned. This was pointless there was no way he would believe us without proof.

''If we were owl killers, would we have saved your son?'' Marina now said and to our surprise, Orestes spoke up to our defense. ''Father, they did save me.''

''Quit defending them, boy!'' Brutus snapped at him.

''You never listen to me!'' Orestes exclaimed, unfurling his wings. I felt bad for him for having a father like that. But at the same time, I was happy to notice that he seemed so much different from the stern general, who, as expected, ignored his son and turned his attention back to us.

''Tell me where Frieda has your colony stopping next,'' he demanded to know and leaned his head down at Shade.

''I don't know,'' Shade said half-lying.

''Very well,'' Brutus replied calmly as if he had just expected such an answer coming from him.  
He then lifted his head and faced his owl soldiers. ''Lock them up!'' he commanded.

''Yes sir,'' one of them replied.

''Orestes and I need time...to think of the most excruciatingly painful way to loosen their tongues.''

I gasped in fear hearing this and then felt myself getting painfully picked up by my hair and my hood while my friends were also roughly dragged away by the scruffs of their furs.

Soon after we found ourselves being looked up in a hollow tree with thick twigs blocking the way out and an owl soldier guarding the entrance. I let out a sigh and sat down on the floor with my back leaning against the wood while rubbing my head a bit after that painful endurance earlier.  
I surely did not want to know what Brutus had in mind to make us talk in order to give him the answers he wants to hear.

Shade bared his fangs while clenching his fists, ''If we hadn't saved that owl, this would have never happened!'' he said.

''We did the right thing,'' Marina insisted with her arms crossed, ''If we ignored Orestes, he'd be dead! And we'd all feel terrible.''

I sighed once more, knowing well she was right but right now it didn't matter at all. What we needed was a plan to escape. Unfortunately, that seemed to be an impossible task.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

A little further away the Silverwing colony had eventually decided to finally stop to rest and hunt.  
One of them, the elder Bathsheba caught a small tiger moth with her jaws and gulped it down before flying over to Frieda who was roosting on a tree.

''Hello, Bathsheba,'' the chief elder greeted her politely. ''Full already?''

''Let me tell you it wasn't easy with this low mosquito count,'' the old bat grumbled, despite the fact that she just caught a rather good catch, ''Your choices are starving the colony! Honestly Frieda, what are you thinking?''

Frieda glared at Bathsheba but before she could say something Mercury flew over them.  
''Do you hear the dawn chorus? We have to go now or decide to roost.''

Looking up at the brightening sky Frieda let out a heavy sigh. ''Alright,'' she said tiredly. ''Prepare to leave.''

Mercury nodded and flew off to alert the colony of their leader's decision, while Bathsheba just shook her head and flew off, growling a bit to herself.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Still, in our cell, Marina and Shade had set down next to me on the floor while we awaited our gruesome fate. Just then I heard talking outside and wondered what was going on when suddenly Oreste's head peaked into our cell.

''Psst, You three!'' he whispered, trying to get our attention. ''You want to get out of here?''

Shade frowned distrustfully, ''Uh, no thanks.''

''Say what?'' I asked while Marina looking at him with disbelief.

''Don't you two get it?'' Shade said angrily, ''The minute he lets us out, he cries for help, we get torn to shreds, and he gets a medal!''

Orestes looked hurt by Shades accusations and turned around as if he was about to leave.

''Wait!'' Marina said trying to stop him, ''Why would you let us go? Your father would kill you.''

The young owl narrowed his eyes bitterly, ''My dad wouldn't care if I was dead anyway. All he cares about is this stupid war!''

''You got that right,'' Shade went up to the bars and gripped them tightly with his hands, ''That guy's out of control! He's a maniac! He's...he's a warmongering lunatic! He's a-...''  
I cleared my throat to interrupt him and nodded towards Orestes who hung his head down in shame.  
''Oh ... sorry.'' the Silverwing said honestly, ''Eh, would you mind opening that latch for us?''

Orestes looked around to be sure nobody was around then unlocked the cell with his foot.  
With a sigh of relief, we quickly went out. ''Thanks,'' Marina said, smiling up at Orestes who happily smiled back.

''Okay, let's get out of here now!'' Shade said, wanting to leave as quick as possible.

''And go where?'' Marina asked.

''To the fire towers,'' he reminded her.

''But we don't know where they are. We don't even know where we are.''

She was right, but we also couldn't stay here for much longer, or we would get spotted.

''Hey! I know where that is,'' Orestes exclaimed happily.

''You do?'' I asked, looking at him in surprise.

''If by that you mean the electrical power relay station constructed by some of your kind?'' he replied leaving me quite speechless.

''Uh, I guess ... Can you tell us how to get there?''

''It will be quicker if I took you there. Come on!'' Orestes flew up, leaving us no choice but to follow him.

* * *

 **AN: _Yay a new chapter ^w^ I'm really glad I was able to finish it even though it took me almost a month but hey that's live._**

 ** _Anyways, I wanted to say thank you for all the reviews, faves and follows this story is getting so far. I'm really glad you guys like it so far and I hope you will enjoy this one and the future chapters as well. :)_**


	17. Chase of Death

**Chapter 17: Chase of Death**

* * *

 **~ Goth's POV ~**

''Goth...are we there yet?'' I heard Throbb whining for the dozenth time, ''Can you see the towers of fire? I am so tired of all this flying!''

I rolled my eyes then glared at him over my shoulder. ''If we were there, '' I asked clearly annoyed, ''would we still be flying?''

''The cold... I am sure it is slowing my wings. And I am so hungry, I could eat a moth!,'' Throbb paused, thinking a bit, ''Maybe... two moths.''

I laughed scornfully, ''That is so sad. Especially since we will soon be dining at the Silverwing buffet.''

''Buffet?,'' Throbb seemed thrilled, ''As in...dining without limits?'' Seconds later I heard him chuckle with delight and the sound of his tongue licking over his lips. ''Excelente.''

Not long after did we finally reach the place of the fire towers. It was a complex variety of human-made buildings with a giant fence surrounding the area. Probably in order to keep others away from this place. All around was the crackling sound of electricity.

We landed on top the roof of a wooden shed that stood just a meter away from this place and began sniffing around for small juicy northern bats.  
Crouching down I easily tore off a piece of the roof tile and took a short peek inside. It was empty.

''Not so fast,'' I said, stopping my cousin from pulling off another tile.

''Huh?''

''It looks like dinner has not yet arrived,'' I went on and scanned the skies, wondering where the Silverwings could be.

* * *

 **~ Vanessa's POV ~**

''And the electricity is generated at the dam, that's called hydro-electrical power. And then it's relayed here to-''

''Can we lose the science lesson, please?'' Shade begged while trying his best to keep up with Marina and Orestes.  
He was laboriously flapping his wings not looking one bit interested in anything the young owl told us about.  
I for one fairly impressed at all the information Orestes blurted out about my kind the closer we got to the power relay station. How on earth could a bird like him know about all this stuff? Not even I was familiar with any of this.

''Orestes is just trying to be nice Shade,'' Marina scolded him, unhappy about his rudeness.

''Goth and Throbb know about the soundmap!,'' he said, his voice sounding quite desperate, ''My colony is there! We have to fly faster!''

I sighed, knowing very well that he was right. We didn't have time for a leisurely flight around. We had to reach the landmark and warn the Silverwings. Hopefully, we did not come too late.

* * *

 **~ Third Person POV ~  
**

Meanwhile, not long after the three animals and their human companion had left, the owls took notice of their disappearance and informed General Brutus who was less than happy about it.

''You're saying our prisoners disappeared with Orestes?!'' he growled while pacing back and forth on the fallen tree before the open prison cell, glaring down on Atlas and the soldier who was supposed to guard the outlaws.

''Well, ...,'' the soldier said carefully, feeling slightly afraid, ''Disappeared may not be the-''

''Are you proposing that those puny perpetrators have kidnapped Orestes?!'' Brutus whirled around, now shouting with fury.

''Uhm, ...'' seeking help the soldiers turned to Atlas, who nodded and spoke in his turn.  
''Yes sir, That is what it appears to have happened.''

''Now it's personal!'' the general bellowed, ''That bat will regret the day he first took wing and that human ..., ''his face darkened, ''I knew one of those would bring doom into the order of life. She needs to be punished together with all the unlucky fellows she calls to be her friends. I shall show no mercy.'' He turned to his second in command. ''Lieutenant Atlas, are those Greywings still in your capture?''

''They are traveling eastward towards the mountains but my men are watching them closely, not leaving them out of their sight even once like you ordered.''

Brutus nodded, ''Good ... then act out operation retributive justice.''

Atlas hesitated for a moment but seeing the determined look in his general's eyes he knew he would not back down from his words. ''Of course sir. It shall be done right away,'' He said and bowed respectfully.  
With this settled Brutus turned his attention back to the other owl soldier and glared down on him coldly, causing him to flinch back.  
''And you ... You pathetic excuse for a guard. You will take the criminals place in prison while I decide your fate!''

The guard gulped and lowered his head, shaking with fear.

* * *

 **~ Goth's POV ~**

''Why aren't they here? Towers of fire! I'm sure that's what the Silverwing said.''  
Slowly I was starting to get tired of waiting for our meal to arrive. Especially now that the wind had increased and blew dead leaves around with its ice-cold air that got through my thin fur, making me shiver. Just like Throbb, who was also chattering with his teeth  
 _Curse this place._ I wrapped my wings closer to my body but it didn't help much. I was still freezing.  
''I can be hungry or cold, not both. I say we roost.'' And with that I squeezed myself through the hole I tore into the roof and crouched down on one of the wooden beams underneath. Throbb followed right away but thanks to his potbelly he got stuck halfway through.  
Honestly, why did I had to travel with this idiot again?

Throbb grunted and wiggled around, trying to fit through the hole. Suddenly he seemed to have noticed something 'cause I heard him gasp and yelling down to me with excitement.  
''Goth! On the horizon!'' Not letting him finish I roosted upside down to grab my cousins leg with my hands to pull him roughly inside the shed.  
With two strong tugs, Throbb slipped through the roof and landed hard onto the floor on his back.

''I think dinner's on the way, ''he groaned lifting his head, ''Two small bats and an owl.'' He then fell back down and lost consciousness.

''Hmm…tapas,'' I said and chuckled darkly.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Soon me and my friends landed onto the roof of the shed outside of the power station. Marina and Shade were panting heavily from the exhausting long but quick flight.  
It once again made me feel bad that they had to carry me along the way, but I was also just glad to have some kind of ground back under my feet instead of free air.

''This looks like an entrance,'' Marina said while crawling over to a hole in the roof.  
Shade and I crawled after her when the Silverwing abruptly stopped and started sniffing the air. ''Huh?''

''Something wrong Shade?'' I asked looking at him, while Orestes looked fascinated at the power station, not having noticed anything odd just yet.

''Something doesn't smell right…'' Shade said frowning with concern.

I wondered what he was talking about and closed my eyes, trying to concentrate on my surroundings. Being a human, my smelling and hearing weren't as good as a bat's but maybe I could still sense something notably. The atmosphere itself indeed felt portentous.

Marina decided to take look into the shed and peaked her head inside the darkness. Seconds later she jumped back up again with a frightened gasp, causing Shade, Orestes and I to cry out in fright.  
I then got up in order to see what scared her but the tiles beneath my feet began to crack dangerously. Eyes widen I spread out my arms and tried to keep my balance.

Wondering what's going on Orestes flew over and before I stop him he landed onto the wood, causing it to break thanks to his weight, dropping us all inside, screaming.

''Ouch!'' I exclaimed as I landed painfully on the ground, face downward. My chest, arms and knees hurt from the impact but it didn't feel like I had broken anything. Luckily.  
Though I did feel a bruise on my chin which even bled a little. But besides that I was okay.

Groaning in pain my friends began to get back up as well when the dust cleared and a shadow moved closer to us.  
Looking up I gasped seeing Goth hovering over us with an evil grin on his face.  
He looked at every one of us until his eyes landed on Orestes. The poor young owl looked terrified at the sight of the giant bat right in front of him.  
He tried to move away but Goth simply stepped onto his tail feathers, holding him in place.

Another groan of pain came from the other end of the shed. Looking over I saw Throbb slowly waking up while also lying on the floor and wondered what had happened to him.  
Goth, however, ignored his cousin and instead turned his attention towards me and Shade.  
Grinning with pleasure he spread open his wings as if greeting old friends after a long time.  
''Señorita! Shade! Mios amigos. You remembered how I enjoy owl?'' He turned his face back to Orestes, glaring down at him threateningly. ''Maybe that should be my first course tonight.''

Orestes's yellow eyes widen in horror, but then he gathered his courage together and quickly bit down on Goths foot, causing the Vampyrum to cry out in pain and grabbing his foot tightly in his hands, releasing the owl.  
Wasting no time Orestes fled out of the shed through the broken ceiling. But before we could follow him Goth let go of his foot, looking pissed and swiped his claws down at us without warning, causing Shade, Marina and I to quickly dodge out of his reach.

Instantaneously, Shade hurried up to the ceiling while Marina hovered above me, wanting to grab my hands with her feet. Before she could get me Goth slipped in front of her and blocked the way to the exit.

 _Just great what now?_ I frantically looked around, searching for something helpful when Shade dashed out of the shed causing Goth to react like any predator would do and raced after him.

''Quick! Try to get out of here!'' Marina hissed and pushed me into the shadows before yelling at Goth: ''You want a piece of me, you big dumb bat?! Well come and get it!''

Had she lost her mind? And how the hell was I supposed to get out of here?

Like expected Goth did not back down from her challenge and sank back down into the shed with a sinister chuckle.

Thunder growled outside and for a moment the room got enlighted by lighting flashing inside from behind the glass window in the door.

I desperately looked around for a way to escape and eventually spotted a broom leaning against a wall at the other end of the shed. If I could manage to get there without the Cannibal noticing, I could possibly climb up the broomstick towards the shelve, hanging close to it and from there try climbing over the wooden beams towards the exit and out of the shed.

Unfortunately, Goth's must have sensed something was odd and turned around just when I was about to sneak over to the broom.

''Now, where do we think we are going Señorita?'' He chuckled darkly and walked closer to me.

Not thinking twice I rushed over to the broom but the Vampyrum overtook me with ease and swooped in my way.

I took a sharp break and spun around on my heels. Now running into the other direction.

Again Goth blocked my path and once more I was forced to change directions. Hearing him laughing I knew he was playing with me like a cat plays with a mouse. He could've easily just snatched me with his sharp claws but instead kept chasing me across the shed until I would eventually succumb to my exhaustion.

Marina wanted to help me but whenever she tried to get closer she had to move away in order to avoid Goths claws and teeth.

This was torture. I had never been a persistent runner before and if it weren't for the current adrenalin rush I would have probably already stopped by now but I didn't. It would have meant my end if I did. Nevertheless, with the growing pain in my chest, it was just a matter of time until my body would give up.

Suddenly, the Vampyrum got caught off guard as Shade flew back into the shed, smacking a wing against his face.  
Goth growled with fury and struck down at him but the Silverwing quickly dodged his claw and rushed back to the ceiling but not without picking me up by my hands in his feet first.

Not wanting us to escape, Goth lost no time and followed us on the spot.  
He burst through the opening in the ceiling, causing bits and pieces of it to fly through the air, making the hole in the roof even bigger. Shade struggled to avoid the debris but one of it hit me on the back causing me to yell out in pain.

''Oh, such a strong one!'' I heard Goth laughing behind us, obviously enjoying the scene.

* * *

 **~ Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, Frieda, Mercury and the other Silverwings were approaching the fire towers to take a rest from their long flight. Noticing something odd the messenger flew a little further ahead, thinking he had seen something on top of one of the electricity poles.

Right then a warning screech filled the air and Mercury immediately turned around to warn his leader.

''Frieda, owl dead ahead!'' he said in alarm, ''We can't land at the power station.''

The chief elder acted straightaway: ''Silverwings, hard bank, southeast. Now!''

And with that, every bat turned around and changed direction. Escaping their doom.

* * *

 **~ Vanessa's POV ~**

Shade zigzagged around the shed. Trying his best to avoid getting himself or me snatched in Goth's jaws. I clung onto his feet for dear life and squeezed his ankles to make him go even faster not wanting to know what would happen if the cannibal got us.

''Shade! Vanessa!'' Marina yelled over to us, circling before the shed. ''Throbb's trapped. Do you need me?''

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed a figure on the roof struggling to squeeze his body through an opening between the tiles.

''No!'' Shade yelled back at her, ''Go hide!'' I was sure he actually wanted to hand me over to Marina but with Goth right behind us, there was the risk that he would catch either of us at it.

''Shade, the power station! We may lose him in there!'' I said.

The Silverwing followed my advice and flew over the fence that surrounded the area. It was a suicidal task, hanging around an electrical power station during an approaching thunderstorm but right now we had worse things to worry about.

'' Faster!'' I urged and took a look over my shoulder. To my horror, Goth was still chasing us. Hardly a meter away. And he got closer. Not much longer and he would eventually reach us and then ...

''Watch out!''

The Silverwing barely avoided getting us struck by a lightning bolt as it hit into the factory, sending sparks flying everywhere. Again looking back I saw Goth still behind. Not looking tired one bit.  
Unfortunately, Shade was getting tired. His wingbeats got slower and he was panting heavily.  
Keep going. Don't give up now, please! Even though I was not a religious person I send out silent prayers for our safety. Not caring what kind of ethereal being would come to our aid.  
Taking a sharp turn around a pole Goth nearly grasped my cloak with his sharp teeth but the fabric slipped out of reach just in time.

Shade kept on zigzagging and circling around the poles and wires. Eventually, I couldn't see the Vampyrum behind us anymore. Thinking we lost him Shade stopped on one of the metal conductors to catch his breath. In the meantime I stood close to the metal pole, fearfully looking around.  
So far everything seemed fine so I allowed myself to take a deep breath. But then I got an odd feeling like something was watching us. Slowly I turned my head around only to see razor-sharp teeth charging right at me.

Just in time, Shade quickly pushed me out of the way before Goth could bite my face off and took flight. I wanted to jump over to him like an aerial acrobat, clearly not thinking about my high anxiety, but a clawed hand suddenly grasped my wrist and pulled me roughly back onto the conductor.

Thunder rolled again and in the light of another lightning, I saw Goth looking down at me with a despiteful smirk on his face. I had no idea what to do besides trying to rip my arm free just to let Goth snatch it right back and to dig his teeth painfully into my skin.

I screamed but more of the shock than of the pain. However, Goth didn't let go. Even though I struggled wildly in his grip and also punched him on the muzzle.  
He was just chuckling as if it was nothing more than a game.  
Getting furious I tried kicking him in the gut and started scratching his face with my other hand. Still, he refused to let go of me and instead bit down even harder.  
''Aaahhh!'' I screamed yet again and then bit down hard on Goth's ear, causing the Vampyrum to finally back off in surprise. Definitely not having expected such move coming from an ordinary human.

Clenching my wounded arm to my chest I took a step back without looking and almost cried out again as I slipped and fell off the metal.

Fortunately, I was caught by Shade before I could hit the ground and let him carry me with his feet through the factory premise.

''Are you alright?'' he asked worriedly.

''Yeah, don't worry just fly!''

He nodded and took on speed while I tried my best to ignore the crucial pain in my left arm, not even daring to look at it right now.  
Suddenly Shade yelped as he got struck down by Goth unexpectedly. I just barely kept hold onto him while the giant bat dove after us, chuckling evilly.

Luckily Shade managed to get his senses back on time and flew into a tunnel of metal pipes, again followed by Goth.

Looking behind me I gasped seeing him getting closer with his jaws open wide.  
Just in time, I pulled up my feet before the Vampyrum was able to sink his fangs into them and then looked back in confusion, hearing the sound of metal scratching on metal.  
Goth's metal band was grazing against one of the pipes, making it spark up with light.

Seconds later we flew out of the tunnel with the metal fence right in front of us.  
At that moment a lightning bolt struck into it, causing electricity to surge throughout it and an idea popped up in my mind.  
It was probably a very stupid idea but what other option had we left?

''Shade, fly closer to the fence over there!'' I said, pointing with my feet towards the wall of metal that was crackling with voltage.

''What?'' he asked with shock, ''Are you crazy?''

''Trust me. We have to lead Goth there,'' I said insistently.

''But...'' he sighed ''Alright, but hang on!''

I nodded as he gained up speed and headed towards the metal fence. Like expected Goth followed us without question.

Almost at the fence, I looked back at Goth and smirked.

''Hey, stupid head,'' I called out to him tauntingly, ''What's taking you so long? We are right here.''

By the sound of his furious growl, I was sure I was about to get killed. No matter if my plan would work or not.  
I urged Shade to fly faster as Goth got dangerously nearer. Then just when he turned to fly over the fence I looked back, blew a raspberry at Goth and let go off Shade's feet.  
Before the Silverwing could even realize what was going on, I was already falling through the gap between the charged fence bars. Curled into a ball so I wouldn't touch the metal.

Goth, however, was not so lucky.  
Blinded with wrath he did not look where he was going and he dove right after me and rammed straight into the electrified metal touching it with his own metal band. Immediately he got shocked by the voltage, causing him to scream in agony  
Bursting in flames, Goth got sent off into the forest with smoke trailing behind him, still screaming until his body fell down to the ground.

I also landed quite hard on the ground and tumbled over the grass. Eventually, I stopped and managed to sit up on my knees, feeling extremely sick and lightheaded.  
Like wrapped in cotton wool I heard Throbb wailing in the distance and assumed that Goth was definitely not in good shape.

Rain began to pour down and I started looking around wondering where Shade, Marina and Orestes were. I tried to stand up but my legs felt like jellybeans, so I plopped back down again.  
I hissed feeling pain and took a look at my left hand. It looked horrible. Almost my entire hand was covered in blood with deep teeth marks on my skin. Examining it closer I could even lift up a piece of my skin, flesh included, that nearly got bitten off. It was shocking and made me feel even sicker now.

At the sound of soft gasps, I turned my head around as good as I could and watched my friends looking over the edge of a small hill with fume ascending from it.  
I wanted to call out my friends names but the world around me began to turn dark and seconds later I blacked out.

* * *

 **AN: _Surprise, Another Chapter :D ^w^ I had so much fun writing this one I could barely take a break from it._**


	18. Safe traveling?

**Chapter 18: Safe traveling?**

* * *

 **~ Shade's POV ~**

I let out a deep sigh at the sight of Goth's charred and tattered body all sprawled out on the ground. He looked badly burned with deep holes in the membrane of his wings and wads of smoke rising up from his body.

''It's over Shade,'' Marina whispered while putting a hand on my shoulder but I shook my head.

''No,'' I replied softly, ''It just began.'' I just knew it. I didn't know why but this here ... this wasn't the end. It was far from it.

I turned away, not wanting to look at the dead Vampyrum any longer. My colony was safe now. Still, there the owls but at least we didn't have to worry about Goth anymore. Though, I kinda wished we had gone rid of him differently. I didn't believe that even someone like him deserved such an end like this.  
Hearing Throbb's mournful cries in the close distance I decided it would be better to move on away from here. Not that he attacked us in order to avenge his cousin or something.

''Come on guys, let's leave!'' I said and was just about to lift off when Marina stopped me.

''Wait, Shade! Where is Vanessa?''

''Huh?'' I looked around. She was right. Our human friend was nowhere to see. Thereby I was sure she had been with me the whole time.

''I hope nothing happened to her,'' Orestes said worriedly and looked around, trying to spot her somewhere.

Marina looked at me reproachfully, ''I thought you would take care of her Shade.''

''I'm sorry,'' I exculpated myself, ''Everything happened so fast. I didn't notice her letting go of me. I thought she was still with me.''

Marina looked around, her face filled with worry. ''What if she got electrified as well? What if she is lying somewhere, is hurt or even dead?''

I was shocked. How could she even think of something like this?

''Vanessa is not dead,'' I insisted, ''She is doing fine. I'm sure of it. She is probably just hiding somewhere or something.'' I searched around hoping to find my human friend when Orestes suddenly called out.

''Marina! Shade! I think I found her.'' He pointed with his wingtip to a motionless body, lying only a few wing beats away from us on the grass. I let out a relieved sigh quickly recognized Vanessa and flew over to her followed by Marina and Orestes.  
There, I knelt down beside her and gently shook her shoulder in order to try waking her up but nothing happened.

''What's wrong with her?'' Marina asked.

''I don't know.'' I shook her again, more wildly this time. Still, no reaction. _She is not dead. She can't be._ ''Vanessa!'' Slowly I could feel panic raising inside me and began blaming myself for not having paid more attention to her as we flew over the fence. How could I even have lost her? Did she lose her grip and fell into the fence? No, she doesn't look burned. Why didn't I check if she was still clinging to my feet?  
Seeking help I turned to Marina. Seeing her looking shocked and distressed with tears shimmering in her eyes. ''Shade, is she...''

I shook my head, shutting my eyes tightly to hold back my own tears. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. I did not want to believe that Vanessa just sacrificed herself to save us from Goth. Just no. No!

''Hey, guys. I think she is still alive!'' Wiping my tears off with the back of my hand I glanced up to see Orestes putting the tip of his wing on Vanessa's neck right under her chin. ''She still has a pulse. It's weak though but its there. And look she also still breathing.'' He pointed to a bunch of small grass stalks right under Vanessa's nose. I looked closer and noticed they were moving a little. Actuated by her soft breaths.

''Thanks Nocturna, she is okay,'' Marina let out a sigh sounding more than relieved. I too was relieved but then I noticed her hand and gasped seeing the blood on it.

''Oh no. She is hurt,'' Orestes gasped. Having noticed it as well.

''What happened to her?'' Marina asked.

I carefully picked up her wounded arm and inspected it closer. The bleeding seemed to have already stopped and the rain had also washed most of it off. However, the skin looked torn with deep tooth marks in it. ''Goth must have bitten her.'' I frowned. Maybe it was good that he had died the way he did. He had nearly bitten her hand off.

Marina growled softly, probably thinking the same. ''We have to take care of her wound,'' she said and flew off to look for some healing herbs.

''I know of something that could help,'' Orestes lifts off as well and quickly returned with a bundle of long dark green leaves. ''Here,'' he said, offering them to me, ''Maybe we could use those to bandage her arm with.''  
I smiled at him thankfully and took the leaves from him. Just then Marina returned as well with some red berries in her claws. I quickly recognized them as the same berries Zephyr had used when treating the tear on my wing. Like him, she squished them into a paste and carefully smeared it onto Vanessa's injury. Afterward, I used the leaves Orestes gave me and bandaged her arm to make sure the poultice wouldn't fall off and for her arm to heal better.

''That should do it,'' I said smiling contentedly.

''We should get her out of the rain,'' Marina suggested and I nodded in agreement with my fur already soaking wet and dripping.

With Orestes help, we managed to take Vanessa over to a hollow tree and carefully laid her down inside on some moss. Since it was close to dawn Marina and I quickly decided to take this place as a roost for the day. Unfortunately, it wasn't big enough for Orestes to get inside too but the young owl didn't seem to mind about it anyway.

''That's alright,'' he said with a smile. ''I should head back now anyway. My dad is probably wondering where I am by now.''

''You think he may be worried about you?'' Marina asked.

Orestes sighed, shaking his head. ''Nah, he is more likely thinking I'm looking for some bugs or something.''

''Oh, ...''

''Well then, thank you for everything Orestes. I owe you one,'' I said, changing the subject and smiled at him.

''No problem,'' he replied smiling back, ''It was a pleasure for me to help you. And to even meet you guys as well.''

''We are glad to have met you as well Orestes,'' Marina said happily.

I nodded in agreement couldn't have said it any better myself.  
The young horned owl made himself ready to go and took one last glance over to Vanessa. ''I never thought I would ever meet a human,'' he said softly, ''I hope she will wake up again soon.''

''Don't worry. I'm sure she will,'' I assured him, feeling quite confident about it.

He nodded. ''Alright. Goodbye then. Maybe someday we will see each other again.''

''That would be great,'' I replied and together with Marina I watched him fly off until we couldn't see him anymore. Then we went to roost and closed our eyes in order to get some sleep.

* * *

 **~ Third Person POV ~**

A few miles away from the three friends and the fire towers, the Silverwings choose to roost in a hollow pine tree.

Bathsheba, being one of those who did not feel sleepy yet, decided now would be a good time to hold a serious meeting with the other elders and Ariel.  
Chinook hung also with them, even though he was a just newborn and therefore too young to be included. However, under the present circumstances, it didn't matter for Frieda. And Lucretia and Aurora were also okay with it. They had bigger problems to care about at the moment.  
Only Bathsheba thought it was outrageous, but she didn't say anything about it. Instead, she immediately started the discussion with an, for her, urgent message:

''Frieda,'' she said, ''I think I speak for the entire colony when I say these roosting conditions are unacceptable.''

Chinook huffed and glared at the elder. ''You don't speak for me,'' he said. Slowly but surely he was getting tired of her constantly putting down Frieda's decisions.

''Chinook!'' Lucretia silenced him and gave him a stern look to remind him of his place before nodding to Frieda in order to let her speak.

''It was clearly not safe to stop at the fire towers,'' the chief elder indicated while looking at Bathsheba.

''For the record, I did counsel you not to take us there.''

''What?'' Ariel was outraged. ''You're the one who convinced her to take us there!''

The chubby elder gasped as if she got hurt by her words, ''Ariel! You're blaming me for this daymare of a migration? Your son, Shade and this ... human are both responsible for our entire situation!''

''Vanessa did nothing wrong!'' Chinook retorted angrily.

''That human is better of dead by now,'' Bathsheba snapped, ''One less of this barbaric species of her  
the better for all of us.''

Chinook glared at her furiously. Then to his shock, he heard whispering among the colony, many of them agreeing with what Bathsheba said.

''Please, everyone!'' Frieda called out, trying to calm everyone down. ''With the owls against us, we cannot afford to fight amongst ourselves. Try to get some rest. Tomorrow we join the males at Stonehold.''

With a nod, the others departed to find a place to sleep for the day. Only Chinook stood behind for a moment, glancing out of the knothole at the approaching dawn light.  
 _Please be okay,_ he thought emphatically, _both of you._  
Then he let out a sigh and fluttered over to his mother's roosting place.

* * *

 **~ Vanessa's POV ~**

The next evening I woke up with a groan. My whole body felt as if I recently decided to train as a stunt double for an action movie. Slowly and carefully I sat up and lifted my left hand to rub the sleep out of my eyes. I hissed as I felt pain in my wrist as I moved my hand and looked down at it to see leaves bandaged around it. For a second I wondered why it was there until I remembered what had happened.  
I gulped thinking about the moment when Goth had bitten into my arm and hoped the wound wasn't too deep or would get an infection.

For now, it seemed just fine. My friends had done well, taking care of my arm while I was knocked out.  
Thinking about them I looked around, wondering where they were why also wondering about what had happened to Goth and Throbb. The last thing I remembered was that Goth followed me straight into the electric fence and got shot back into the sky like a rocket ship.

''Vanessa, you are awake!''

I turned around to see Marina flying down to me from her roost. To my surprise, she looked pretty relieved to see I'm awake.

''Is everything okay?,'' she asked, ''How are you feeling?''

I was a little baffled from the concern in her voice. Didn't she actually dislike me? Then again it was nice to know that she seemingly decided to be friendlier towards me now.

''I'm okay,'' I said smiling at her and looked around again, ''Where is Shade?''

''He went out to hunt, but he should be back in a few minutes or so.''

''I see.''

''Oh, and Orestes went back to his father,'' she told me.

I nodded. Now that she said it. I had begun to wonder where he was. Too bad he had to leave before I could say goodbye to him. ''And what about ...?''

''Don't worry. We don't have to fear about them anymore.''

I blinked wondering what she meant by that when Shade came fluttering back into the tree.  
''Vanessa, you are finally awake,'' he exclaimed looking happy to see me.

''She just woke up a few minutes ago,'' Marina explained.

''How long was I out?''

''Just the whole day. The sun went down two hours ago,'' she said.

''I see.''

Shade hopped closer and sat down beside me and Marina. ''Here that is for you. I'm sorry I couldn't find any berries, so I brought this for you instead. I hope it's okay.''

''It's fine Shade I ...'' Just as I was about to take the food he brought me I took a look down at his hand to see he was offering me a big fat grub.

 _Dear heavens! No, just no!_

''Eh, thank you...'' I said, smiling forcefully while I was actually screaming on the inside.

I looked less than happy at the thought of eating that thing. Seriously, couldn't he at least bring me a moth or something else more pleasing to look at? There was no way I could eat that, but I was hungry so ...  
Just then I heard chuckling and looked up in confusion to see Shade shaking a little with his lips pressed together.

''What's wrong?'' I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Instead of answering the Silverwing just chuckling even more. Eventually, he couldn't hold it back anymore and started laughing out loud. Now completely confused I looked at Marina wondering if she had a clue about what was going on with him, but she just shrugged. Looking as puzzled as I.

The Silverwing kept laughing a little while more until he finally calmed down.  
''I-I'm sorry,'' he said wiping tears away from his eyes from laughing so hard, ''But you should've seen the look on your face Vanessa. That was just priceless.''

 _Haha, very funny Shade,_ I thought while looking not amused.

Eventually, Shade calmed down enough and opened his other hand to show me a freshly picked bunch of blueberries.

I wanted to kill him.

The Silverwing still chuckled a bit seeing the look on my face. ''I'm very sorry Vanessa. I just had to. I promise I won't do it again. Honestly.'' He offered me the berries and I took them, even though I was angry at him for playing this joke on me, while he ate the grub himself.

''Was that really necessary Shade?'' Marina scolded him with a glare and her wings crossed before her chest, ''You know she doesn't like to eat bugs.''

''Hey, I apologized okay.''

''Guys, it's fine. Let's stop talking about it okay?!'' I said, not wanting to see them fighting.

''So, you are not angry with me?'' Shade asked looking at me hopefully.

I sighed. ''No, I'm not'' I said even though I actually was but only a little. ''But you better not try this again.''

''I won't. Don't worry,'' he promised me then took a look outside, ''I think it's time we should leave. Now that we got rid of those two meat-eaters our journey to Hibernaculum should be much easier now.  
 _  
Got rid of...?_

''Wait a second Shade! What do you mean with 'we got rid of those two meat-eaters'? What happened to them?''

Shade blinked at me in confusion. ''Did you forget what happened to Goth yesterday?''

I shook my head ''Uh, no. But all I remember is that he got himself burned by that electric fence and landed in some kind of ditch or something.''

''Well, he did,'' Shade replied, ''But that doesn't matter. Fact is he's dead.''

''For real?'' I asked surprised. Shade nodded happily.

''At least Goth is,'' mentioned Marina, ''As far as we know Throbb is still alive.''

''I don't think we need to worry about him much,'' Shade opined, ''His cousin was the more ... dangerous one of those two and since he is gone now. Everything will be fine.''

''But what about the owls?'' I asked.

''Orestes will probably tell his father what happened and if he needs to prove himself he can also show him the place where Goth's body lies.''

I nodded. That sounded good to me. If Brutus saw Goth he would have no other choice than believe our words. Though who knows how long his body will be lying there before scavengers would come and eat him up. Then again the size of his bones should be proof enough. I bet Brutus had never seen such big bat bones in his life before.

* * *

Moments later I clung onto Marina's feet as we continued our journey towards Hibernaculum.  
At first, the Brightwing was adamant to give me more time to rest but I assured her that I was okay.  
Still, she kept on checking on me whenever she thought she felt my grip losing on her feet.  
Each time I smiled up at her and tightened my grip a little while trying to ignore the soft throbbing pain in my left arm.

After a few hours of flying Shade let out a deep sigh after looking around hopefully.

''Any trace of your colony?'' Marina asked but he shook his head.

''Not even an echo. They can't be far from here, but we've got to rest!''

He did sound a bit exhausted as he flew down to a tree branch to roost with Marina following him. The young female set me down close to the trunk then hung upside down underneath.

''I don't mind flying on,'' she said.

''The Silverwings will be roosting too,'' Shade replied,'' We won't lose any time.'' He smiled happily, ''And now since Goth is dead, we don't have to worry about him any longer.''

''That's true,'' I said and sat down on the branch with my back leaning against the tree trunk. Slightly I wondered if Goth really kicked the bucked like Shade said.

 _He has to be dead. There is no way he could've survived that._

''So you guys think we will catch up with the Silverwings with less trouble now?''

''Positive!'' Shade smiled confidently and roosted beside the Brightwing. ''Oh- you are going to love the Silverwings, Marina. All of them! My mom, and Mercury ... and even Chinook!''

''And Frieda?''

''Especially Frieda. Everybody loves Frieda.''

I smiled while listening to him. Like them I couldn't wait to see the other Silverwings again.  
I really missed them by now. Especially Mercury. He was the first bat I even met and who introduced me to Frieda and others. He also took good care of me during my time in Tree Heaven. He was... just like a close friend to me. ... No! More than that. He was like a father to me.

I sighed.  
Mercury and Ariel were probably worried to death about me and Shade. Maybe they even thought we were dead or something.  
Too bad there was no way for us let them know beforehand that we were alright, like giving them a ... call or ... anything ... like that...

* * *

I woke up feeling someone shaking my shoulder just realizing I'd fallen asleep.

''Vanessa, is everything alright?''

Blinking my eyes open I noticed Marina looking at me with a worried expression on her face.

''Yeah, yeah. I'm fine,'' I yawned, ''Just took a nap that's all.''

She looked at me as if she didn't quite believe my words but instead of saying more about it she just nodded and told me to hang onto her feet, so we could continue flying on before dawn was coming.

Even though my arm started to hurt a bit again, I grabbed both of her feet with my hands and let her carry me through the air.

We didn't fly far when Shade suddenly stopped in mid-flight. His ear twitched as he seemed to listen to something before he motioned to us to follow him down into the woods.

I was just about to ask what was wrong when I heard voices coming from below.

As silent as possible Shade and Marina flew down towards a clearing where a female black bear was sitting together with her cub, a raccoon and a rabbit. From the sight of it, it looked like they were having a serious discussion.  
Swiftly we hid in a branch of a nearby hollow tree in order to eavesdrop their conversation.

''Why can't the wolves stay up in the mountains where they belong?'' we heard one of them complaining.

''They should be hunting bats like those savage Silverwings, not all of us!'' another one added, causing all three of us to gasp.

What was that suppose to mean? Did Brutus seriously order the wolves to go after us now as well? Carefully I walked closer to the opening and took a peek outside.

''Well, I'm not raising my cub here,'' said the female bear and nuzzled her baby, causing the little guy to squeal in delight. I smiled thinking the bear cub was kinda cute and noticed the rabbit and the raccoon smiling at him as well.

''We need to prepare for hibernation. It'll be safer in the eastern valley.''

The other two gasped as they hear this.

''You are crossing the human's road?''

''What about their metal machines?'' the rabbit pointed out wide-eyed, ''You might get killed!''

''We will get killed if we stay,'' the mother bear insisted ''We won't come back until those Silverwings are brought to justice.''

''Oh, This isn't fair. It wasn't the Silverwings who killed the owls, it was giant bats!'' Shade muttered with a frown and clenched his fists. I knew he was right but there was not really anything we could do about it at the moment. Especially if nearly half the forest wanted us killed.

Shade crossed his arms before his chest while looking like he was thinking about something when I  
suddenly realized that it had become quiet outside. Too quiet to be exact.  
Weird. Did those three just left or something?  
I was just about to take another peek outside to see what was going on when I heard something scratching against the bark of the tree we were in.

''What...'' Shade had noticed it as well but I quickly hushed him before he could say anything and pressed my ear against the wood trying to hear something. Right then Marina wrinkled her nose as if it was itching her, and then she gave a loud-

''ACHOO!''

Like on cue the tree began to shake violently while there was savage growling and barking outside.  
Pretty soon the tree toppled over causing all three of us to scream in fright as we got hurled around inside the branch. With a dull impact, the tree hit the ground, forcing the branch to snap off and roll a few feet away.

When the branch finally came to a stop, Shade pulled himself up with a groan as did Marina and I.  
Thanks to these little turbulences my arm began to hurt even more now, so I had to grasp it with my other hand.  
Suddenly the long snout of a wolf appeared at one of the openings. Quickly we stumbled away towards the other end just to see another snout in front of the exit with baring sharp teeth and saliva running down its flews.  
Marina screamed when a paw suddenly ducked into the branch from above, scratching at the hole on the top.

 _That's it!_ I thought eyes widen with fear, _We are trapped!_

* * *

 **AN: _New Chapter ^^ Hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to read and review ;) :)_**


	19. Change of Hearts

**Chapter 19: Change of Hearts**

* * *

Suddenly, the teeth on one end of the branch disappeared and a bright yellow-colored eye peeked inside, staring down at us with malicious curiosity.

''So this is what the owls are so worked up about, ''the wolf said with amusement, ''Tiny flying mice and an itty bitty human.''

''H-hey let us go!'' Shade demanded and stepped in front of me and Marina, trying his best to look brave.

''You have no right to hold us!'' Marina added with a glare.

''What's the hurry?'' the wolf asked with factitious kindness, ''Tell us where your colony is hiding Silverwing.''

''So you can tell the owls and have us killed? Forget it!''

''Killed?'' the wolf and his companions laughed in amusement as if Shade just told them a good joke.

''Oh, we don't want you killed,'' came the voice of a female wolf from the other end of the branch, ''We want you and your colony protected.''

 _Yeah, right._ I thought, raising an eyebrow at her in disbelieve.

''As long as silverwings are free, we can do whatever we want,'' drawled the male, who I assumed to be the alpha of this pack, ''Hunt, expand our territory. All in the name of war.'' He grinned.

''But the war is wrong!'' Marina exclaimed with conviction, ''The silverwings are innocent.''

''Innocent, guilty… it matters not to us,'' the female casually replied and snapped her jaws with a growl, ''Our concern is food.''

''With other words, you don't give a damn about what's going on. The main point is you can simply run around the forest and sink your teeth in anything that crosses your way, ''I said crossing my arms before my chest while glaring at her.

The alpha wolf gave out a chuckle. ''You've got it little one. Brutus is too focused on his feud with the bats that he doesn't realize what else is going on around him.'' Once again he broke out into laughter and his companions quickly joined in. Then suddenly the alpha stopped and sniffed the air.  
At once all wolves got silent and I wondered what was happening outside. I felt tempted to crawl over to one of the holes and check when we heard the wolves running off while growling and their fangs snapping.  
 _They probably found some prey to hunt after._ I thought and felt bad for the unlucky creature that would soon end as a meal for those nasty predators.

''Come on guys, let's get moving before they come back,'' Shade said and hoped over to the entrance to fly back up into the air. Marina and I nodded and followed him with me clinging onto the brightwings feet.

* * *

 **~ Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, the silverwings continued their journey towards Stonehold in order to meet with the adult males of the colony.

''This is taking too long. We must be off course!'' Bathsheba complained once again just to earn a disapproving glance from Chinook who was flying right beside her.

''Stonehold just ahead!'' Frieda called out with a smile, ignoring the other elder's words.

''The rest of the males will be with us soon.'' Ariel said with excitement while flying beside her leader.''

Frieda nodded, ''And just in time,'' she added, smiling back.

Bathsheba growled under her breath, surely not happy to hear this while Chinook just smirked, feeling glad that the whiny elder got proven wrong.

* * *

 **~ Vanessa's POV ~**

Shade, Marina and I kept flying through the forest for about an hour after our encounter with the wolves. Eventually, we decided to take a short break by a stream in order to rest and catch something to eat.  
I let Marina land me down on the shore before she flew off to hunt some bugs with Shade and walked a bit closer to the water.  
Carefully I bend down and scooped some of it up with my hands to drink it.  
Even though it was cold, the water felt very refreshing, so I drank some more of it until I didn't feel thirsty anymore.

''Ah, that was good,'' I sighed and wiped some drops from my mouth with the back of my sleeve.  
Just then I heard something that sounded like loud snoring.  
Feeling puzzled I looked around until I spotted a massive white hill lying just a few feet away from me on the shore snoring loudly.

 _Wait a minute!_ I thought confused. _Hills can't snore._  
Taking a closer look I finally notice that the white surface was actually fur, belonging to a large animal that decided to take a nap by the stream.  
I got back up and carefully walked closer to it wanting to know what kind of animal that was.  
After walking halfway around I stopped by its face and figured that it was a bear.  
It looked kinda like the mother bear I saw earlier but with snow-white instead of black fur and a black colored nose. On it's left ear stuck an orange tag.

I looked around to see if my friends were around then looked back at the sleeping bear in front of me. I couldn't believe how big it was. It was practically huge. The nose alone was at least twice the size of my current body size.  
Knowing it was probably a bad idea I still couldn't help myself but reached out to touch the nose. Just wanting to know what it felt like. I slowly walked closer until my palm came in direct contact with the bear's nose which felt damp like the nose of a dog.  
Feeling the bear's hot breath against my face made me took a step back, not liking the stinky fish odor that came with it.

Suddenly the white bear frowned in its sleep and wrinkled its nose as if smelling something unfamiliar. Quickly, I moved away from its face and stumbled against the bear's fur.  
I smiled, liking how soft and warm it felt as I touched it. For a moment I was tempted to snuggle into it like a big warm blanket. Though, I doubted that the bear would like to see a stranger moreover a human so close by itself when it woke up. Then again... The bear didn't look like it would wake up any time soon and its fur looked just too comfy so... Why not take a rest on it for just a few minutes? That shouldn't cause any trouble now, should it?!

So I was just about to snuggle into the bear's soft white fur when it suddenly started to wake up with a big yawn.  
Quickly I stepped away and watched how the bear blinked open its eyes and looked around tiredly as if trying to focus on its surroundings. It was just about to go back to sleep when its eyes eventually caught on to me. Immediately the bear seemed to be fully awake with its blue eyes wide open.

''Uh, ... hi,'' I said, smiling awkwardly, causing the white bear to rose up in surprise and let out a deafening roar. Taken by surprise I screamed and jumped behind a log that was lying on the grass close by.  
Feeling scared I peeked over the log and watched the bear stop growling and falling back onto all fours. Then it walked closer and sniffed me a bit, inducing me to back away some more. But instead of gobbling me up with its big mouth the bear just blinked at me and then walked over to the stream where it, to my surprise, dunked its head right into the cold water. A moment later the bear pulled its head out again and shook the water out of its fur.  
Confused about its act I kept watching the bear while feeling quite unsure what to do now.  
From my hiding place, I heard it mumbling to itself about me. And by the sound of its voice, I assumed it to be a female, saying something like I'm just a product of her fantasy. Not real. Just a dream and so on.

I wondered if I should talk to her and let her know that I'm not a dream when I heard my friends calling for me.  
Seconds later they both landed by me on the grass with Shade having a worried look on his face.  
''Vanessa are you alright? We heard a loud roar and ...'' He stopped hearing Marina gasp behind him and turned around to see the massive white she-bear right behind us.

The bear looked at each of us in silence for a few seconds. Then its eyes lit up, realizing that she wasn't dreaming at all.

''Y-you're a silverwing!'' she exclaimed staring at Shade. ''Oh, not good. Definitely not good. You must go! You were never here. You are just a dream. A bad, bad dream.''

''Uh, no. We are not,'' Shade said, frowning a bit in confusion while flying up onto the log, ''We are real. I'm Shade and these are Marina and Vanessa.''

The bear looked down at us again and gasped softly, noticing me. ''A tiny human?! That's even better.'' With an annoyed groan, she turned around, obviously not being happy to have met us and trudged away.

''Hey! Wait!'' called Shade and flew after her deeper into the forest, followed by Marina and me. Eventually, the she-bear stopped by a giant metallic container stuck between two trees on a small clearing. Insouciantly she nudged the hatch with her nose and started munching the orange food pellets that fell out of it.

''What is that stuff?'' Marina asked, wrinkling her nose in disgust at the strange food as we three landed on top of the container. Startled by her voice, the bear banged her head on the metal, causing us to almost fell down from it.

''Huh? Are you still here?'' She asked with a glare and rubbed her sore head.

''Did the humans bring you that food?'' Shade asked.

''Well, of course!''

''What is it?''

''It's crunchy...fishy...berry stuff,'' she obviously had no idea. ''Who cares? It's delicious.'' She smiled a bit to herself then quickly glared at us again. ''But keep away! You can't have any,'' she warned us and went back to eat her meal.

I crossed my arms and frowned at that attitude of hers. _Like we would even want any,_ I thought.

''Did the humans put that tag on your ear?'' Marina asked curiously while studying the bears head.

The white bear licked some crumbs off of her muzzle. ''Of course, they did,'' she proudly said while turning her ear with the orange tag on it towards us. ''I'm special. I'm a black bear who happens to be white.''

''The humans gave me this,'' Marina lifted up her wing to show her, her silver band.

''Oh, that's not the same, You're just a bat. There are millions of bats. I'm rare. That's why the humans worship me.''

 _Excuse me... what?!_  
I gaped at her filled with indignation. But before I could even think of what to say all four of us got startled by feral growls and snarling. Turning around we saw a raccoon running for his life while being chased by the same wolf pack Shade, Marina and I had encountered earlier.

''Someone should do something!'' Marina exclaimed.

The she-bear just huffed. ''Those are just some predators hunting their prey. Its nature so why bother?''

''Maybe because those wolves are hunting down the whole forest?!'' I said.

''So?''

''So? Who cares if it's nature. There still needs to be someone who keeps them at bay.''

''Look, girl, I'm not their leader so there wouldn't even be a point in trying to reason with them.''  
My eyes lid up. An idea crossed my mind.

''And what if you were the leader? Being in such a high position you could represent and protect the other animals and get much praise from them as well, besides the fact of your ... rareness.''

''Oh no forget it!,'' she said, shaking her head,'' If that owl Brutus gets the whiff of that, I'll be forced to be at his meetings and then I would need to tell him about you three. Then he would want details!  
Yes, and then there'll be more meetings, and plans, and patrols, and probably even more meetings.''  
She huffed and shook her head. ''Thank you but I'm happy with the peaceful life I have now and I do not wish to change that. And now buzz off!'' The white bear turned back to her pellets, purposely smacking and chewing loudly.

Feeling frustrated and tired of trying to talk with her, Shade let a soft sigh and got airborne, quickly followed by Marina and me clinging to her feet.

''She's as bad as the wolves.''

''It's the humans' fault giving her everything she wants.''

I let out a sigh, knowing well how right Shade was. It was my kinds fault. Unfortunately, there seemed nothing we could do to change that.

* * *

We kept flying silently through the forest for a few more minutes until we suddenly heard a desperate crying sound echoing from below. Wondering what that was we quickly decided to check it out and came across a little black bear cub, who seemed to be all alone, crying his eyes out.

''Where is his mother?'' Marina asked softly.

''She must have been killed, crossing the road,'' I answered, remembering the conversation I had overheard in the branch about the black bear mother, wanting to cross it in order to get to the eastern valley.

''Shh- shh-shh,'' Shade hushed softly, trying to calm down the baby, ''Keep quiet, Keep quiet.''

The little guy stopped crying and looked up at us sadly.

''There must be some safe place we can take him,'' Marina said.

''Sure but where?''

Shade thought for a moment, ''I know! We can take him to the white she-bear.''

''Huh?''

''Are you sure about that Shade?'' I asked, not liking that idea.

''Well, you have a better idea?''

''Eh, no but ...''

''Then it's settled. That female might be a little self-seeking but I'm sure she won't neglect one of her own in need.''

I looked back at the cub. The little guy just began to cry out again for his mother and laid down on his tummy. I may still not agree with Shade's plan but hearing the little ones heart-wrenching wails I knew we had to do something quickly. We obviously couldn't leave him here. The wolves or any other predator might come and eat him. The only question now was how we would get the cub to follow us around?

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Flying through wafts of mist, the silverwings crossed a gorge with a sparkling river flowing below.

Chinook beamed, knowing where they must be now. ''Stonehold! It is, isn't it Frieda?'' he asked her excitedly.

The chief elder smiled and nodded softly, causing the young male to burst out in joy and to fly up ahead. Leading the colony down to the rocky walls. Immediately Chinook began to explore the new territory and fluttered inside Stonehold, feeling eager to meet his father for the first time in his life.

In the meantime, Frieda, along with Mercury and Bathsheba sat down on the branch of a tree while the rest of the Silverwings took roost on the other trees around.

''The young ones will finally meet their fathers,'' Frieda said, smiling happily

Mercury smiled back and watched the young bats flying around in excitement.  
But his smile soon vanished from his face when Chinook returned. Confusion and sadness were written on his face. ''They're...they're gone. The males! They're all...gone...''

As if knowing it must be her fault, Bathsheba glared accusingly at Frieda and growled softly while the chief elder herself lets out a worried sigh.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

After thinking for a moment, Marina seemed to have an idea, spotting a bush with juicy red berries on it. She flew over and broke off a small twig from it. ''Hey, looky what I've got,'' She fluttered back to the cub and wigged the twig in front of his face to get his attention.

The cub stopped crying and looked at her with wide curious eyes.  
''That's it, sweety. Now you want those berries? Then come, come...''

She flew a bit ahead and the cub did crawl after her.

Happy to see that Marina's plan seemed to, Shade and I followed as well.

It didn't take us long until we were back at the same small clearing with the food container.

To our luck the female white bear was still there, reaching into the container as if trying to scrape some leftovers.

''Hey, You. Hello!'' Shade called out, causing the bear to accidentally slam her head into the metal once more in surprise. She fell back onto her rear and rubbed her head, grumbling a bit. She looked over to us and gasped in horror, spotting the little black bear cub among us.

''Get that thing out of here!'' she said with disgust and flinched back.

I frowned at her, while Shade put me down on a large rock before landing down on it himself.

''He needs looking after. His mother was killed'' Marina tried to explain as she landed before the adult bear on the ground. But the white one just huffed and stubbornly turned her face away.

''Gah, Look!'' Shade tried to reason with her, ''He's a black bear and you are really a black bear.''

''Who happens to be white!'' she snapped.

''Whatever!'' I said, rolling my eyes, having enough of this. ''The point is this cub needs help and...''

''Then why are you bugging me with this? I have no interest in babysitting some annoying tot,''

says, interrupting me and turned away. Totally ignoring me glaring at her.

''Now,'' she said,'' Take your sniveling little friend – HEY! Get out of there!''

Without noticing the bear cub had crawled over to a pile of leftovers from her food container and was munching on it hungrily. Not liking to see this the female bear rushed over and roughly shoved him away with her big paw and began eating it herself.

I frowned at her more before turning over to Shade, wondering if he had an idea of what we could do now, but he just helplessly shrugged his shoulders. I sighed.

Knowing there was nothing we could do to change her opinion. Marina, Shade and I decided it was probably for the best if we just left. So Marina picked the twig with the berries back up and lured the cub away and deeper into the forest with me and Shade close behind.

I took a short look over my shoulder and watched the she-bear noisily eating the food she refused to share with a starving baby. With a deep sigh, I shook my head and turned my glance away from her again.

* * *

''My colony is barely an echo from here, and we are stuck with this cub,'' Shade groaned, really hating our current situation.''

''Well, we can't just leave him,'' I said and looked down on the cub. A bit earlier Marina had given him the berries to eat., so he would have at least a bit food in his stomach. And now he was still following us around. It seemed the little guy already grew attached to us.  
I smiled softly thinking of this but my smile quickly vanished as I suddenly heard growling close around us.

''Don't worry.'' a voice growled pleasantly, and to our shock, the alpha wolf stepped forwards from behind a tree with a sinister grin on his face, ''We'll take care of the little guy.''

We tried to back away but two more wolves appeared out of the shadows. Encircling us with their teeth bared and eyes glowing with hunger.  
Shade urged the cub to turn around and run back, but one of the wolves jumped in our way, blocking our path and causing the little guy to back off and cry out in fear.  
Shade charged at the wolf and smacked himself right onto his face, blocking his view with his wings. The wolf whimpered and shook him off and dodged another attack by Marina.

''Well, well, well…,'' the alpha chuckled, ''perhaps you really are owl killers.'' He and his pack moved closer towards me and the cub, forcing us to be backed into a corner. With horror, I watched the predators getting closer and desperately thought of a plan. Being small as I was I might had a chance to quickly sneak away between the wolves paws and hide under some roots or something. But what about the cub? I couldn't leave him. The wolves would surely eat him.

Looking up I saw Shade and Marina swooping down for another attack. But the alpha already saw them coming and with the help of his hind leg, he stroke Shade right into his face, causing the boy to crash into Marina behind him. With a grunt, they both fell down and tumbled over the ground.

''Guys!'' I called out to them, hoping they were alright. To my joy Shade did raise up his head, but he seemed to be too weak to get up fully. I wanted to run to him and Marina and get the hell out of here but the wolves were getting closer and closer.  
The baby bear beside me was frozen with fear and whimpered. I looked around, trying to find something to use as a weapon to defend myself and the cub. But there was nothing useful in sight.

However, I did not want to die like a wuss and cling to the bear cub's fur while crying for help and mercy. No way! I would rather die while at least trying to fight than that. Nevertheless, I knew  
this was probably a very stupid idea. I had absolutely no chance against three full-grown wolves. Still, this didn't stop me from stepping between them and the cub.

''Move it you bastards! I won't let you have this cub!'' I said, trying my best to sound as brave as I could.

The alpha chuckled with amusement. ''Oh, and who's going to stop us? You, pipsqueak?'' He laughed out loudly, quickly joined by his pack. I simply glared at them, still trying not to show any fear.

''Just go! Uhm...Out!...Down!''

''What are you doing? Do you think you can treat us like measly dogs?'' The alpha wolf growled at me threateningly, looking greatly insulted. I knew I made a mistake watching the two other wolves looked also quite pissed now as well.

''S-stay away!'' I called, feeling my heart beating hard in my chest. One of the wolves crouched down, ready to jump but the alpha quickly stepped in his way, growling at him. The other wolf respectfully backed away, giving his leader the advantage of attacking us first.

With a satisfied grin, he faced us again. The young bear cub cried out again and put his little paws over his eyes not wanting to see what's going to happen next. I myself kept standing where I was. My heart beating faster with my breath stuck in my throat. _That's it,_ I thought, _This is the end!_

The alpha wolf snarled dangerously and was just about to pounce on us when suddenly a large white paw hit him against his jaw, causing him to be sent flying backward.  
For a moment I was confused and didn't get what was going on. But then I looked up and to my surprise, I saw the white-furred black bear female, towering protectively over me and the cub.  
Letting out a loud, deafening roar, she caused the wolves to back away from us in fear.

''Cowards, attack her!'' the alpha snarled and led them back towards the she-bear in order to attack.  
But before they could get to too close, she simply smacked the leader away again with her paw and threw another wolf, that managed to leap on top of her into the trunk of a tree.  
Now the third wolf tried to attack but the she-bear easily knocked him away as well.  
Then the alpha charged at her again and went for her throat, but she quickly snatched him by his own and held him away, while he tried to bite into her face.

Meanwhile, my two bat friends managed to get back into the scene and helped her in her fight against the wolves. Shade himself landed on the alpha wolf's face as he did earlier with one of the others, causing him to cry out in pain and fall from the bears grasp, while Marina sunk her fangs into the skin of another wolf. The wolf howled in pain and shook her off while trying to bite her and immediately got hit in the face by the she-bear. Whimpering like scared little puppies the two wolves run away into the woods, leaving their leader behind.

The alpha himself, however, did not want to give up that easily.  
Once more, after freeing himself from Shade, he lunged at me and the bear cub but the adult female bear knocked him away from us again. With a growl he got back up again, ready to attack her. But after one more roar, he eventually gave up and turned around. Defeated, he run off after his pack, whimpering and with his tail tucked between his legs.

Marina and Shade cheered while I sat down smiling with relief. The little cub growled happily as well and waved at our savior, who looked over to him and at her paw and then off into the distance as if she could not believe what she had done.

* * *

Moments later we were all back by the food container. There I happily watched how the white she-bear pushed a tray of food pellets towards the cub, who gratefully dig into the food with a big smile on his face.

''You showed those wolves!'' a rabbit that had been watching the fight along with a raccoon praised her with joy.

''You took charge!'' Marina cheered as well, while she hung on a branch together with Shade.

''Yes...but they'll be back,'' the bear said with a sigh and laid down on the ground.

''And there'll be more of them next time,'' Shade said with a frown.

''We have to cross the human road. Find someplace safe…'' suggested the raccoon but the she-bear shook her head.

''No!'' she said firmly. ''Running away won't solve this. We'll go to Brutus. We'll tell him Shade's story and get him to stop this war.''

My bat friends looked overjoyed by her decision but I wasn't quite sure of what to think of this.

Sure she had saved us and all but did she really do that because she had a change of heart or did she just do it for recognition?

''You sure Brutus will listen?'' the rabbit asked doubtfully.

The white one sighted. Then she looked ahead with determination written on her face, ''We have to try it at least. In the name of the bats and all critters in the forest, I will personally go to the General myself and tell him everything.''

Hearing this huffed a bit and sat down and crossed my arms before my chest. ''So will you?'' I asked earning a glance from Marina that said something along the line of What are you doing? Don't ruin this moment. But I ignored her.  
The Addressed one, however, looked at me puzzled and with a raised eyebrow.

''Yes I will. What makes you think I won't little one?''

I shrugged. ''Dunno, maybe because of that attitude of yours you greeted us with when we first met you. Or the fact that you first refused to help us with Koda here first.''

''Koda?'' Shade asked.

''Uh, just a name I came up with.'' I explained, ''We can't call him cub the whole time. Now can we?''

''Eh, no...''

''But Vanessa,'' Marina interrupted him and looked down at me reproachfully, ''Aren't you a little ungrateful here? You and Koda would be dead if it weren't for her.''

I sighed in annoyance. ''Marina...''

''No, you listen! It doesn't matter how she acted earlier. Fact is she saved us which means she must have changed her mind.''

''I just want to know the cause of it,'' I said, ''Nobody changes just like that without some influence.''

''Girls please,'' Shade tried to pease, ''I'm sure that ... uh...'' He stopped and looked at the white she-bear. Just realizing that we never got to know her name.

''Excuse me for not introducing me to you earlier,'' She said, ''I'm Ursa.''

''Well, then, thank you, Ursa, for helping us,'' Shade smiled. Marina smiled as well and then glared at me again, noticing I was still frowning. She was just about to say something again but Ursa held up her paw, stopping her.

''You are welcome but please, don't argue. Vanessa here is right to doubt my actions. I was foolish and selfish for acting this way. Especially on a time like this.''

''But what made you change your mind now?'' I asked curiously.

''It was you.''

''Huh?''

Ursa nodded while I stared at her in confusion. ''You were the one who said that need to be someone who represents the beast in this forest and protect them. Don't get me wrong I'm not volunteering as leader to get praise and recognition. I'm doing that because there needs to be someone who keeps an overview of this chaos here and who reminds Brutus of what his actions are causing to everyone else.''

''I see...''

''But that's not all.'' I looked back up, wondering what else she had to tell me. ''When you and your friends went of with Koda... I saw a glance of you looking at me. Your sad and disappointed expression made me overthink my whole life and what I was doing.'' She paused shortly and sighted. ''You must now. I've got this tag on my ear since I was a little cub myself. Like Koda here. I had lost my mother, but I was lucky to be found by friendly humans who took good care of me. As soon as I grew up they brought me back into the wild but kept on sending me food, knowing I was very untrained in gathering my own food. With time, I managed to take care of myself but I also kept on eating the food the humans bring me until today. I thought they would do this because they think I'm special. But seeing you I realized that I'm not so special at all. At least not because of the color of my fur.''

''Well, I think you are special. But in some other way you know,'' I said and smiled at her. Ursa smiled back and the other animals smiled as well.

''Now then, '' she said and looked up into the sky, ''You three better now go and look for a roost. It's close to dawn.'' Shade nodded and flew down to me.

I petted the bear cub in order to say goodbye and let him nuzzle me playfully.  
''Promise you will take good care of Koda?'' I asked, looking at Ursa.

''Don't worry. I will care for him like he were my own,'' she assured me with another smile. ''Now, goodbye my friends and safe traveling.''

''Goodbye and good luck with Brutus! Hopefully, he will listen to you.''

Shade grabbed my hands with his feet and followed Marina high up into the sky.  
For a moment we stopped and looked back to wave at Ursa, Koda, the rabbit, and the raccoon and watched them waving back to us before finally setting off.

* * *

 **~ Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, back at the outskirts of the power station, Goth was still lying lifeless in the ditch. His bruised and burned body attracted the attention of two hungry crows. They flew down next to him on a fallen tree and looked rather pleased with what they had found.

One of them began to prod at Goth's arm with his beak before turning to his friend. ''Not only is this bat huge, it's already cooked!'' He had no time to laugh at his own joke when the bat's hand suddenly jolt up and grabbed him by his throat. Startled the other crow fled right on the spot, leaving his friend behind. The poor crow tried to struggle out of Goth's grasp but the Vampyrum just took a bite into the bird, earning a pained scream and chuckled darkly while killing him.

* * *

 **AN: _Yay new Chapter ^^ To be honest writing this wasn't so easy as the last ones. Especially, since I had to think of how to include Ursa in the story while also going away from the plot of the TV series. Unlike there I want to keep the beast mostly out of the war of Brutus and the Silverwings. But don't worry this won't be the last time we have seen Ursa. ;) We will meet her again in the future. :)_**

 ** _For now, our friends need to rest. Danger is coming close!_**


	20. Murphy's Law

**Chapter 20: Murphy's Law**

* * *

Back at Stonehold all females and newborns were concern about the none existence of the males. Some were talking about what may have happened to them while hoping it wasn't something bad. And others kept flying around, searching for their missing brothers, sons, mates, and fathers. They were calling out names but no one answered.

''Any sign of the males?'' Frieda asked Ariel as the younger female landed down beside her on a narrow ledge.

''Not a trace,'' she replied gloomily.

Then Mercury appeared having a serious look on his face. ''The owls were here,'' he said grimly and showed them a dark brown owl feather which he had found while scouting through the roost. All silverwings gasped with shock as they saw this. Fearing the worst.  
Among the tumult, Bathsheba flew up from her roost and landed down before Frieda, Ariel, and Mercury.

''On top of everything we have endured. Now the males are missing,'' she snarled loudly, causing everyone else around to turn quiet. ''How many more bad decisions will Frieda make?''

The chief elder glared down at her with her arms crossed before her chest. But her confidence quickly fell, hearing most of the silverwings muttering in agreement with Bathsheba. The chubby elder smirked knowing this was her chance to finally get what she always wanted. ''It's my duty to ensure that the leadership acts in the best interest of all silverwings,'' she announced.

''Frieda is a good leader!'' Ariel protested, ''We trust her.''

''I'm sure you do Ariel,'' Bathsheba said, looking at her with her nose wrinkled, ''She saved the life of your law-breaker son and that so-called human, who both brought nothing but trouble to the whole colony.''

''That's not true!'' Mercury tried to interfere but the pudgy elder ignored him and turned her attention back to the rest of the colony instead.

''Maybe it's time for a leadership vote,'' she declared and to Frieda, Mercury and Ariel's shock, all bats around them muttered among themselves and nodded in agreement.

* * *

Like promised, Ursa, the white-furred black bear, had sent out a message to General Brutus and was now meeting him, his son Orestes and Lieutenant Atlas to speak with him about Shade, Vanessa, and the wolves. As she arrived, she was accompanied by other forest animals including deer, squirrels, rabbits, and skunks.

''Greetings, General Brutus,'' she said as she approached.

''What you have to report, bear?''

''The silverwings are innocent of the charges,'' Ursa claimed, getting straight to the point.

''So, you've made contact with the silverwing and probably with that tiny human and the brightwing as well. How are they?'' he asked calmly, causing his son to drop his beak and to stare at his father in confusion. Since when was he interested in Shade's well-being or that of the two girls Vanessa and Marina?

''They are fine,'' Ursa said not noticing anything odd about the General's question, ''Shade assures me that giant meat-eating bats are-''

''Are responsible for this war?'' he finished for her.

''Yes…'' Ursa was taken aback. How come he knew about that? ''A-and the wolves are eating more than their share.''

The animals that came with her to this meeting chattered in agreement.

''I see,'' the owl general leaned back and closed his eyes for a second. ''I can assure you that this war has nothing to do with giant meat-eating bats- and everything to do with those murderers Shade, Vanessa, and the silverwing colony!''

''Shade and Vanessa are saving lives not taking them!'' Ursa argued against him.

''Enough!'' Brutus bellowed, glaring, slowly losing his temper. ''I have been told to expect such lies from you.''

''From whom?'' Ursa demanded to know and all the animals surrounding her began chattering about what was going on. Asking themselves the same question.

Brutus, however, did not give her an answer but instead took a look over her head. Turning around, Ursa grimaced at the sight of a familiar wolf pack, that arrived on the scene like on cue. _Of course!_ , she thought grimly, _That explains it all._

* * *

 **~ Vanessa's POV ~**

The next evening, we had a quick breakfast consisting of mosquitos and bugs for my friends and juicy berries for myself.

I sighed. How I wished to get something else to eat for a change. The berries were all tasty out of question but I wasn't a vegan. I couldn't eat only fruits all the time. Oh, If I could just order a pizza or something like that. That would've been great!

Finishing her meal, Marina landed down by me on the branch and picked a red berry off a bush with her claw. She squeezed the juice onto her band and sighed from the relief it gave her. ''Zephyr was right. These berries really are soothing.'' She picked another one and turned to me. ''Hey, Vanessa, want me to rub some of it onto your arm? It might help you as well, and we need to check on your wound anyway.''

''Sure,'' I replied and wrapped the leaf bandage off of my wrist. The wound underneath seemed to heal well. Scabs had formed over the bloody scratches, and they itched a little. But it felt much better after Marina gently smeared the berry juice over my wrist.

''Thank you,'' I said as she was dressing the wound again with a new fresh leaf.

''You are welcome,'' she replied, smiling at me a bit. Then she turned around to see how Shade was doing. On a branch below us the young male was crouching before a bunch of reddish-brown colored leaves. He tore one of them off and was just about to lick it, when Marina let out a shocked gasped, noticing what he was doing.

''Shade!'' she quickly flew over to stop him. ''That leaf can knock you out cold!'' she reminded him but the silverwing just grinned. Mischief gleamed in his eyes.

''Nah! I don't think it….uh….'' without warning Shade suddenly collapsed face down on the branch and started snoring.

I gasped and watched Marina shaking Shade's shoulder, panicked. ''Shade! Wake up! Shade please!'' Abruptly the unconscious bat woke up again and sat up straight, surprising Marina. He had a bright smile on his face and held up the leaf he plucked while laughing at Marina's reaction.

Miffed over Shade's prank the brightwing glared at him with her hands on her hips. ''Shade! You can't treat Zephyr's teachings like they are some cheap trick!'' she lectured him.

''Hey, I'm sorry,'' he said frowning back and tossed the leaf away while getting back up, ''I could care less about that plant stuff. ''We're on our way to hibernaculum, not herbanaculum.''

''You have to get us there first. Remember the owls are still after us.''

''... and my whole colony.'' Shade looked down at his feet.

I sighed. We really needed to get to the winter roost as soon as possible. But that was easier said than done. Especially since none of us has ever been there before. Moreover, I wondered if we ever catch up with the colony on our way or if they had already reached Hibernaculum before us. And what about the closed sky? Hopefully, they were all safe.

I looked back at them and saw Shade concentrating hard with his eyes tightly closed and his claws placed on his head. Seconds later he opened his eyes up again.

''Well, where do we have to go next?'' Marina asked him.

''Uh, I think that must be stonehold,'' the place where the adult males of my colony spend the summer at, ''he replied.

''Do you think we might meet up with the silverwings there?'' I asked.

''Possible.''

''Great. Now, how far away is it? Marina clapped her hands together and looked at Shade, looking ready to leave.

''Close... I think…''

I raised an eyebrow. ''What do you mean?''

''We just have to look for a pine tree that looks like an arrow,'' he answered.

''Are you kidding?'' Marina frowned at him again, ''there must be a billion pine trees around here!'' She threw her hands up in exasperation.

''Well, I'll know it when I see it,'' he said in self-defense.

''And what if the owls see us first?''

The silverwing looked down again.

''Shade…'' Marina softened her tone and hold up her banded wrist, ''I'm not going to feel safe until I'm comparing bands with Frieda.''.

Shade smiled, ''Come on. Let's make that happen.'' And with that, he got airborne and flew over to me. Picking me up he flew off into the starry sky with Marina beside us.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

''Therefore, in accordance with the statutes of the great treaty- I banish you to the eastern valley for high treason,'' Brutus declared, glaring at Ursa.

The white-furred she-bear angrily stood up on her hind legs. ''A true leader would do everything to avoid war, not create it. Nothing good can come of this, Brutus.''

Unfortunately, her words fell on deaf ears. Only Orestes sighed sympathetically but looked down. Seeing that there was nothing she could do to make the owl General listen, Ursa got back down on all fours and walked off. The animals that came with her to the meeting followed her closely. There was no way they would stay behind whit those voracious wolves. Those however just grinned, knowing that there was still enough prey in the forest. And with Ursa out of the picture, they could hunt freely as much as they wanted.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

After hours of flying around through the forest, we finally spotted the landmark we were looking for. A large pine tree with its tip slightly bend, making it look like an arrow pointing into a certain direction.

 _So that's what he meant by: 'shaped like an arrow',_ I thought and smiled. Now, all we had to do was fly in that direction and reach Stonehold. At our rate, we might as well get there before sunset. I couldn't wait to finally meet Mercury, Ariel and the others again and Shade seemed to be just as excited.

''Are you ready to meet my colony, Marina?'' he called over his shoulder, ''... Marina?''

Weird, why wasn't she answering? Suddenly Shade and I heard a muffled cry right behind us and turned around. To our shock, we saw Marina caught in the tight grasp of a giant bat with one of its feet covering her mouth to prevent her from screaming.

''Throbb!'' I exclaimed, recognizing the giant bat. The Vampyrum chuckled seeing the look on our faces and blew an air kiss at us in greeting.

''Marina!'' Shade shouted, not looking back front to see where he was going.

Having a bad feeling I looked back myself.

Without warning a large clawed hand grabbed me by my cloak and roughly yanked me down on a branch, causing Shade to lose his balance and stumble down beside me. We groaned in pain but managed picked ourselves back up quickly. I wanted to ask if he was ok but then I looked up and turned pale. Another large bat stood right in front of us. One that shouldn't even be here at all. With disbelief written on my face, I watched Goth smiling down at us with a pleasant grin on his face.

''I'm not sure about your friend, but I am quite ready to meet your colony, mi amigos.''

How was that possible? How could Goth still be alive? Didn't Shade say he died of the electricity of the power station? Well, his fur and wings did look burned but seemingly not so much that he would be unable to fly or hunt. His hair and beard were a mess and also a bit shorter than I had in memory. Nevertheless, I could have been blind and still knew that it was him. That voice and that Spanish accent, I could recognize this everywhere.

While Shade and I still stared at Goth, Throbb had flown over and threw Marina into our midst. She moaned from the impact but seemed to be fine. Then she looked up and looked just as horrified as us when noticing Goth. The Vampyrum grinned some more then flew over to his cousin, who had landed on another tree across from us. The chubby Vampyrum wrapped his wings tightly around his body and shivered while the wind softly howled.

''Goth, I am freezing!'' he complained, ''I want to go back to the jungle. I miss the hot sun, the hunting and all my servant bats waiting on me claw and wing...'' he glared over to us, ''I say we eat them now.''

''Patience, Throbb,'' Goth reminded his cousin calmly. ''Two small bats and one puny human do not the buffet make.'' I had to admit, my English was far from perfect since it wasn't my mother tongue but I could have sworn that there was something grammatically wrong with that sentence.  
''However,'' Goth continued, ''spending the winter dining on silverwings will hold us until we return to our warm jungle.'' He flew back to us and snatched Shade by the shoulders, lifting him off his feet. ''Where is your colony? Tell me!'' he hissed and pulled the boy close to his face.''

Looking terrified the young silverwing shakily pointed to the left.  
The Vampyrum glanced over to where Shade was pointing and smiling darkly. ''You are pointing in the opposite direction to where you flew.'' He said and roughly shoved Shade back against the tree.

''Uh...we were about to change directions when you caught us.''

''You are lying,'' Goth snarled and pierced the bark of the tree. Barely an inch away from my face.

 _Holy -!_ I dug my nails into the wood and wished I could just melt into it and disappear.

''No, I-I swear!'' Shade tried to convince him as Goth scratched the wood with his claw. Slowly going down towards my shoulder. Then he pulled his claw away started to laugh loudly and hysterically. Totally confused I turned to my friends and thought Goth had lost his mind all of a sudden. Marina and Shade looked just as puzzled than I. Even Throbb seemed to be wondering what had gotten into his cousin. Seeing him raising his eyebrow and scratching his head while watching.

''S-such...such a feeble attempt at deception,'' Goth had tears in his eyes and wiped them off while laughing even harder.

Shade heavily sighed and looked down.

Eventually Goth managed to calm himself back down to speak again.

''Ah, you know for such a tiny … '' he trailed off, looking down at Shade momentarily and smacked his lips, ''... bat you have caused me muchos problemas.''

His eyes lifted up at a strange sound that came above us and without warning he slammed his claw over our heads, making us scream. He plucked out a pink, fat squeaking worm and slurped it down.

 _Urgh!_ I thought with disgust.

Goth sniffed and held up his finger, ''But no more. Never again will I underestimate you, Shade Silverwing. ''He pointed at him and leaned closer to trembling boy. ''Since you have pointed to your colony in the opposite direction, you must know that I would think that you are lying.''

Shade raised an eyebrow. ''Huh?''

''You must hope that I would not believe you and fly in the opposite direction, yes?'' Goth pointed to the right.

I blinked, ''Eh?''

Goth chuckled, ''I will call your bluff, and we shall fly in the opposite of the opposite direction, si?'' Looking very pleased with himself, he clasped his claws together and smiled.

''Huh?'' My friends and I were now more than confused and I began to think that I was either stuck in a very weird dream or Goth needed to see a vet pretty soon. Whatever the electricity did to his brain. It was definitely nothing good.

''But what if you're wrong, Goth?'' Throbb spoke up, probably worrying about his cousin's sanity as well.

Goth smirked evilly: ''Then you will eat the brightwing, Throbb. That should change his mind.''

The other Vampyrum seemed to like that idea a lot. Grinning viciously he licked his mouth and stared hungrily at Marina who gulped in fear and moved closer to Shade.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Frieda looked with worry up to the bats of her colony. A restless murmur went among them. Then Bathsheba cleared her throat getting everyone's attention and spoke up:

''All those in favor of appointing me as the new leader?''

Most of the silverwings raised their wings.

''All in favor of Frieda?''

Mercury, Chinook, who had flown over to them, and Ariel desperately stretched their wings high up. Unfortunately, just a few others raised their wings as well. The rest abstained.

Realizing that she had won, Bathsheba smiled. ''The colony has spoken,'' she said smugly to Frieda before turning back to the entire colony, ''I humbly accept this responsibility.''

Mercury, Chinook, and Ariel hung their heads with a sigh, knowing there was nothing they could do to change it. Frieda was no longer their chief elder.

''Follow me to hibernaculum!'' Bathsheba declared and soared back into the air. She flew out of the main entrance of stonehold and into the night, followed by the rest of the colony. Reluctantly Frieda, together with her last few loyal followers took off as well after all the others had already flown out.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Goth did not want to lose more time just standing around and urged us to get going. I was happy he let me hang onto Marina's feet instead of insisting that I climb onto Throbb's back like I did during the time we first met. Still, the two meat-eaters were watching while flying behind us closely. Ready to catch us any second should we just think of trying to escape. I sighed softly, hoping there was a way for us to get rid of them before they would realize we are flying in the wrong direction.

''Hey!'' Shade hissed, after we traveled through the sky for quite a while, getting my and Marinas attention.''

''What is it?'' I asked.

''I think I have an idea. If I keep bluffing Goth, I can buy us more time and then...''

''Are you crazy?'' Marina whispered back, ''It was pure luck he thought you were bluffing in the first place!''

''Exactly, and now that I've got him completely figured out-''

I screamed.

Something had grabbed me by my leg and roughly pulled me away from Marina before Shade could even finish his sentence. I heard him yelling my name but I couldn't see him or Marina anymore as I was carried away by Goth with high speed. The wind whipped against my head, causing my hair to go wild and into my face. I managed to reach up and got some of it away from my eyes just to see that my captor was flying straight towards the cliffs. ''Whoa, wait!'' I called out, feeling scared he wanted to drop me there on the rocks but instead he flew down towards a cave in the rock face and threw me inside.

I hissed in pain as I slid over the hard ground and landed on my injured arm. I tried to sit up but was forced to lay back down again when Marina's body crashed against me from being tossed into the cave as well by Throbb. ''Urgh!''

''Marina! Vanessa!'' Shade rushed to our side, breathing heavily from flying as fast as he could after the two larger bats.

''We have wasted too much time flying around!'' Goth growled, roosting at the cave's entrance, ''Throbb! Eat the brightwing.'' Grinning joyfully Throbb flew into the cave and pulled Marina away. I tried to keep hold of her arm, but she slipped out of my grip due to Throbb's strength.

''No!'' Shade screamed, reaching out for her as well.

''Guys!'' Marina cried out fearfully. I got to my feet and wanted to run to Throbb and stop him from eating her but my path was blocked by a very angry looking Goth.

''Where is your colony?!'' he demanded once more and glared down at Shade.

The young silverwing struggled to find words to say as I worriedly looked over to Marina. Throbb had opened his jaws wide, ready to bite her head off any second. Marina was pale as snow and desperately tried to move away from him as far as possible.  
I turned back to Shade for help and saw him clenching his teeth together before crossing his wings before his chest and glaring provocatively at Goth. ''Fine!, ''he eventually said, ''Go ahead! Eat her.''

 _Say what?_ I blinked at Shade while Marina let out a gasp as if she couldn't believe what she just heard. Even Throbb pulled away, looking confused. ''Huh?''

''See if I care. Oh, and while you are at it you can also eat Vanessa as well.

My eyes widen. What the hell was he doing?

Throbb smiled, probably thinking it was ok to eat Marina and opened his jaws back again, now ready to kill her for real. She screamed in horror and struggled in his grasp but before Throbb could even take a bite Goth quickly shoved a small stick into his cousin's open mouth, causing him to gag in surprise and let go of Marina, clutching his throat.

Marina rushed over to us, and we three looked up at Goth who slightly laughed.

''You are up to something, muchacho,'' he said towards Shade.

''No, go ahead!'' Shade insisted. ''I mean, what difference does it make? You're going to eat us anyway!''

''Ah,'' Goth grinned and leaned closer towards him, ''so you would prefer to be eaten now so that you may spare your colony unless of course, you are thinking that there is something in it for you?''

Shade smirked, ''Yes! That is exactly what I'm thinking.''

 _Ok Shade whatever you are doing I hope it works._ I trusted my friend even though I had no idea what crazy plan he had come up with. But whatever it was, it was probably better than nothing.

Goth seemed to be clearly impressed by the silverwing's boldness. ''A bat who would betray his entire colony to save his own hide.'' He threw his head back and laughed. ''I think the spirit of Zotz is alive in this one, Throbb!''

I frowned thoughtfully. Zotz? For some reason, that name rung a bell but I couldn't remember where or when I may have heard it before. Looking back at Goth I saw him lightly tickled Shade's cheek with his index claw, causing the boy to shrink back with a disgusted look on his face.

Throbb groaned and sat up, his eyes pleading for Goth to take the stick out of his mouth, but his cousin ignored him and instead kept his attention towards Shade.

''What exactly do you want?'' he calmly asked him.

''I uh ...want…''

''Yes?''

I looked at Shade with my lips pressed together, hoping he would come up with something quick. And eventually, he did, ''I want you to take the three of us to the jungle to live like royalty with Throbb as our servant.'' The fat bat let out a disbelieving grunt and looked at Shade. I also glared at my friend in confusion.

Once again Goth broke out in laughter.

''What are you doing?'' Marina hissed at him, sounding like she was beginning to think he went crazy.

Shade just smiled. ''Let me handle this,'' he whispered back, looking confident. I nodded, still trusting him and looked back at Goth who had calmed back down again.

''V-very funny,'' he chuckled but quickly got serious again. ''But, I will have to think about it.''

''N-No!'' Shade snapped, pointing at him, ''if you want me to deliver my colony, I need an answer now!''

I blinked, feeling impressed by his bravery.

Goth's smile faded into a scowl as he stared down at the smaller bat's defiant glare. He looked thoughtfully and glanced over at Throbb, who stared back at his cousin with a quizzical expression in his eyes.

Eventually, Goth smirked and crossed his arms. ''You have a deal,'' he declared causing Throbb to look at him in shock. ''Huh?''

Shade nodded in satisfaction and flew out of the cave followed by Goth while Marina jumped into the air to grab me by my hands and lift me off as well. Throbb stared after his cousin and Shade then growled deeply and shut his jaws with all his might, crushing the twig between his sharp teeth.  
He then shoved his face into mine, looking furious. ''I'll end up serving you three... ''he growled, ''for dinner!'' Quickly I jumped back in fear and grabbed hold onto Marina's feet who then dashed out of the cave with Throbb closely behind us.

* * *

 **AN:**

 _ **There you go. Another fresh new chapter ^^**_

 _ **I wasn't quite sure how to call this chapter and might as well change the title again later. ^^;**_

 _ **If you have any suggestions feel free to tell me. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy reading and have a nice day. :)**_


	21. Tricks & Drugs

**Chapter 21: Tricks & Drugs**

* * *

We flew for, what felt like hours, further and further into the wrong direction. Holding on tight to Marina's feet I hoped Goth did not figure out that Shade was actually fooling him before we got to find a way to get rid of him and his cousin. After a few more minutes of flying later, I heard an impatient growl coming from Goth and looked up to see the Vampyrum fly to Shade. Hovering over him like a menacing shadow, he made Shade flinch back and then lead us towards a branch to land.  
Barely down, he snarled irately and picked Shade up with his claws, squeezing his neck.

''We had a deal! You are still taking too long!''

''G-Goth!'' Shade stammered, ''I...I never migrated before! Maybe I should check my sound map again?''

Worriedly I watched Goth growling at Shade in his grasp. But luckily he seemed to calm back down again and let go of him with a sigh. ''Very well,'' he said and stood up straight. ''I am off to hunt. But! I swear on the soul of Zotz, that if you try to trick me...!'' Goth had almost turned around to leave but then turned back to face Shade just in time as a colony of bats fluttered past us in the distance.

My eyes widen. Could that be the Silverwings?

''Uh- Hey Goth come on!'' Shade suddenly blurted out, making me look away from the bats ''Let's...uh...hunt together. I-I'm pretty good you know?''

''Really?''

I smiled slightly, knowing what Shade was doing. He kept Goth distracted, so he wouldn't turn around and spot the other bats. Great job. Just what about Throbb?Turning around I saw that he also wasn't paying attention to what was happening in the sky. What a relief.

Suddenly Goth grinned and leaned closer to Shade, making him chuckled nervously.

''If what you say is true then perhaps you can prove it by killing something for us all to eat, yes?''

''Uh...''

I blinked not having expected that.

Shade looked back to me and Marina, but we just shrug our shoulders, having no idea how to help him. Noticing us fidgeting uncomfortably Goth grinned even more and leaned back towards Shade. ''Unless of course it's just another of your lies, in which case our deal is off, and then we'll take Marina and Vanessa for lunch.'' He chuckled darkly and ran his tongue across his mouth, ''Oh, yes…''

 _W-what?_ He wouldn't really try to eat me, a human now would he? Unfortunately, the evil glimmer in Goth eyes said yes, yes he would.

''Now what are you waiting for? Go find something to eat. Oh, and better be quick, otherwise, you might come upon only one girl when you come back.''

Goth nodded towards Throbb, who wrapped his wings around Marina, pulling her close with a hungry look on his face. The poor brightwing was terrified and did not dare to move at all.

Scared I turned to Shade wanting to say something, but he just looked at me apologetically and flew off from the branch. _Please hurry,_ I thought while wondering what he will bring back when he returns. There was no way he would or even could hunt something that would satisfy the hunger of two full-grown, meat-eating cannibals.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

''Frieda I can't believe what just happened,'' said Ariel, referring to voting back at stonehold. She was still quite shocked that the other elder had even suggested such a thing.

''Huh, Bathsheba has been jealous of Frieda her entire life,'' Mercury explained, looking unhappy about this as well.

Still feeling more loyal to their former leader both bats still accompanying the recently disempowered elder at the rear end of the colony while Chinook had flown ahead to be by his mother, so she wouldn't worry about where he was. None of them had an idea, how close they were to be caught by danger. And also how close they were to reunite with those who got lost. But even though both of them still worried about Vanessa and Shade, Bathsheba was a more important topic for them right now.

''I won't obey her,'' Ariel declared, frowning, ''I can't.''

''Me neither,'' Mercury agreed, frowning as well.

''Now listen to me, both of you,'' Frieda said sternly and looked at them, ''Bathsheba was in her right as an elder to call for that vote. The colony spoke, and we must obey by that.''

Ariel tried to protest: ''But Frieda we can't respect...'' But the former leader decided not to listen to any more of this and flew ahead leaving the other two behind.

''What are we going to do now?'' she asked Mercury, hoping he would have an idea but the male just shook his head.

''I fear there is nothing we can do Ariel, except pray for Nocturna to make things right again.'' With that, he flew ahead towards the front of the colony in case his scouting skills were needed. The young female watched him for a moment then flew closer to the colony as well.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

Shortly after Shade left to hunt in the woods, Goth slipped away into the forest himself without saying why and ordered Throbb to keep an eye on me and Marina. For a moment I hoped Shade would return right away and trick Throbb like he did the last time so we could all escape from here. Without Goth around it probably would have worked. Unfortunately, he did not come back which left me and Marina no choice but to stay here and wait.

After a while, my stomach decided to report itself by giving a loud grumbling sound. I put my hands on my belly and grimaced at the empty feeling inside of me. It's been a while since I last ate and it made me feel sick. I hated that. If only there were a few berries around for me to eat. I glanced around and happily found a bush full with juicy raspberries at the foot of the tree we were on.

The only question was: How could I get down without Throbb noticing? The fat vampyrum was standing right between me and the trunk. And the branch was definitely far too high for me to jump down. ...Speaking of high... Urgh! Why did I just look down?

 _Just stay in the middle ... So it's fine ... Don't move to close to the side!..._

Nervously I shifted around on the spot, trying to think of something that would distract me a little.

 _Can't Shade hurry up already? I want to get down from here as soon as possible!_

''Señorita do you need un baño?''

''Eh...What?'' I asked and looked at Throbb without understanding what he was talking about.

The Vampyrum raised his eyebrow. ''I asked if you need to use the bathroom? You're fidgeting the whole time like you really need to go.''

''Oh,'' I said and felt myself blushing a little, ''Uh, no I don't need to. I'm just ...'' Again my stomach started growling. This time a bit louder than before. ''I'm just hungry, that's all.''

''Then eat something,'' Throbb replied as if it was that simple, ''But stay around! I don't want to get in trouble with Goth just because one of you decided to run away.'' With a huff, he crossed his wings before his chest and looked away again. Apparently, he thought he was the only one who couldn't get his food in an easy way.

''But Throbb, Vanessa has no wings. How is gonna get down from here?''

Throbb blinked at Marina in confusion then turned back to me. ''Oh, right,'' he said, sounding like he just remembered that I wasn't a bat like them. Honestly, how could he even forget this at all?

Anyways, he sighed in annoyance and walked over to me. ''Alright Señorita what do you need?''

I gulped, not liking him to be so close to me but at least he was looking less intimidating then Goth.

''A few of those raspberries down there would be nice,'' I pointed downstairs to the bush on the ground and watched Throbb looking down with a frown on his face. ''But you don't need to bring them to me. Really. Just let Marina carry me to the ground so I can pick them myself.'' I looked over and shared a short glance with the brightwing.

''Uh, yeah. It won't take long. Two-three berries should be enough for her eat. We will be back in a minute, you will see.'' Marina got airborne and flew over to me to grab my hands with her feet. Throbb didn't say anything so I thought we really believed our words. He also didn't stop us as Marina flew down from the branch. As promised she headed for the raspberry bush but did not slow down the closer we got. Instead, she sped up a little and got ready to dash into the woods as Throbb flashed right in front of us, blocking our way.

''Where do you think you are going? The berries are right there!'' He frowned at us angrily and nodded towards the raspberry bush.

''Uh,..we...''

''What? I thought you were hungry?''

I nodded with a gulp and let Marina land me down on the ground. Unfortunately, it seemed that Throbb wasn't as stupid as we thought he was. Which meant we had to think of another way to escape before his cousin returned. However, not wanting to make Throbb less suspicious about me and to finally ease my hunger, I plucked a very juicy looking raspberry and took a big bite from it, liking its taste.

''Bon appetit, Señorita!''

I coughed startled, nearly choking on the piece in my mouth. I spit it back out, feeling lucky it didn't slip into the wrong direction in my throat and turned around. Right behind me stood Goth. He was grinning down at me in amusement and had his wings wrapped around his body like a huge cloak. _When did he come back?_ I wondered. Feeling sure I didn't hear any wings flapping or maybe I just didn't pay enough attention.

The vampyrum grinned at me some more then turned around to Throbb, who stood behind Marina with his claws gripping her shoulders to prevent her from running away. ''Has Shade returned yet?'' he asked. Throbb shook his head. ''Not yet.''

''Hm..'' Contemplative-looking, Goth stared up towards the horizon as if checking the time. ''It's getting late. If he doesn't return within half an hour we may have to eat the brightwing first.''

''No!'' I screamed while Marina looked at Goth in shock.

Throbb chuckled and hungrily licked his lips. He looked more than ready to dig his sharp teeth into Marina's soft skin. All he needed was a sign from Goth.

''Don't! Shade will be here any minute.''

The shorter vampyrum stopped in his tracks and stared into the woods as if expecting to see Shade flying over any second now. But even after a few minutes, there was still no sign of Shade.

Goth chuckled: ''Well, Señoritas you better say goodbye to each other now. It doesn't look like your amigo is coming back tonight.''

''Shade would never abandon us.''

''Yeah,'' I said, agreeing with Marina and frowned at the prince, ''You're just way too impatient!''

Goth growled and grabbed me by my neck, causing me to gack and gasp for air. ''I would better watch my mouth if I were you _human_ ,'' he spat the word out like a disgusting bug, ''Otherwise, I might consider eating you first instead of your brightwing friend here.''

I wrapped my arms around Goth's and tried to make him lose his grip on my neck but he just kept squeezing it tighter, hurting me. I used my left hand to scratch him with my nails, but of course, that was no use.

''Now, what have we here?'' He let go of my neck and instead grabbed my left arm, spotting my bandaged roughly tore the leaf-bandage off, revealing the healing wound underneath. I fearfully watched him grinning again wickedly while looking at my wound. ''Oh, right I remember,'' he said, still holding me, ''A little remembrance of our ... 'dissension' back at the fire towers.'' With his thumb claw, he traced over the wound, scratching a few pieces of scab off, causing it too bleed a bit then pulled me closer to him. ''Listen! The next time you get on my nerves you won't get away with a few scratches, ¿Entendiste?''

I nodded quickly, understanding his warning and stumbled to the ground after Goth pushed me away. Just then we heard a pair of wings fluttering closer and looked up to see Shade finally coming back but without food.

''Uhh.. I think the prey must be scarce in this part of the forest,'' he said and landed on the ground before Goth.

The Vampyrum prince chuckled at the boy and took a deep breath, ''I thought you might say that. That is why I took it upon myself to bring you this…'' He unfurled his large wings and pulled out a small creme-colored rabbit by its ears.

I was shocked. So that's where he went off to earlier. He went hunting himself. And just like a mother cat who wants to teach her kittens to hunt, he brought the prey back alive and dropped it right before Shade's feet.

''Kill the rabbit,'' he demanded, ''Now!"

But Shade didn't move. He just stared speechlessly at Goth then back down at the rabbit, who looked too terrified to run. It only stared at Shade with wide-opened eyes and trembled in fear. Noticing his hesitation Goth scoffed, ''Heh, I thought as much,'' he said and crossed his arms, glaring at Shade, ''You have no intention of leading us to your colony. You have lied to save yourself some more time. Well now, your time has run out.''

I let out a gasp when Goth grabbed Shade tightly by his throat, lifting him up, while Throbb smiled evilly and leaned down, ready to take a bite out of Marina.

''I-I'll gladly kill this rabbit, Goth!'' Shade quickly said and wrapped his own claws around the one that was squeezing his neck. ''It's just that here in the northern forest, we have a custom of beginning every meal with ... ... ... a salad!''

 _Eh, what?_

I raised my eyebrow in confusion and looked back over to Marina and Throbb. According to her expression, my brightwing friend probably thought just like I that Shade had gone crazy while Throbb just blinked and slowly repeated that last word, like learning something new.  
He obviously never heard of something like a salad before. Like Goth, who also looked quite puzzled while losing his grip on Shade.

The Silverwing quickly flew over to a bush, covered in red leaves with thick veins. ''How do you think we stay warm in all this cold?'' he asked and plucked a few of them off.

I still wondered how this was going to help us but then I looked a bit closer at those leaves and eventually recognized them as the same leaves, Zephyr used to heal Shade's wing with.

 _Oh, Shade. You are a genius!_ I thought joyfully and tried hard not to smile by starting to chew on my underlip, while Shade dropped the leaves in Goth and Throbb's hands.

The taller vampyrum looked quite skeptical at the 'salad' in his hands and turned to his cousin, waiting for him to try them first. Feeling less suspicious than him Throbb simply stuffed the leaves into his mouth without thinking twice about it.

''Hmm, not bad,'' he said with a smile.

''A custom you say?'' Goth asked as Shade landed back on the ground, ''Keeps you warm?'' Cautiously he took a small bite out of a leaf and chewed it thoroughly. Believing it was fine to eat he ate the rest as well.

''There, I honored your custom,'' he growled after swallowing the last of the leaves, ''Now kill the rabbit!''

''No!'' I gasped while Marina covered her mouth.

Not wanting to make Goth angrier than he already was, Shade leaned over the rabbit and opened his jaws sharp fangs glinting in the night, ready to bite. The poor fella had no idea that the boy was just acting. It looked so scared that I feared it would either die of a heart attack or faint any second. I looked back up at Goth, wondering how long until the active substance in the leaves would unfold their effect when suddenly I heard a groan coming from Throbb.  
All of us turned around to see the fat, teal-colored bat wobbling back and forth and then falling to his knees. His eyelids were half-closed and he drowsily slurred, ''Oh ...I don't feel so good.''

Goth gasped at his sight and took a step back, looking at Shade with wide-opened eyes. He blinked a couple of times and rubbed his eyes trying to focus. Seizing the moment, Shade released the rabbit, allowing it to run away. I anxiously waited for both cannibals to fall asleep when Throbb gave out a final groan before finally slumping to the ground, fast asleep. Goth, however, was still on his feet but looking at the red bush and his cousin, he realized what was going on. ''He has tricked us!'' he exclaimed and hold back a yawn. He almost tumbled to the ground but managed to keep himself awake.

With an angry roar, he swiped down at Shade. Just in time, the Silverwing flew out of the way, leaving a deep cut in the earth from where Goth slashed the ground with his claws.

I almost shrieked as he focused his attention on me. With a snarl he towered above me, his claws raised up high, ready to kill me right on the spot. Luckily, both Marina and Shade quickly flew over and grabbed each of my hands with their feet and carried me out of the way. Right then Goth yawned once again and fell to his knee. Not being able to fight back any longer the cannibal finally flopped down to the ground. With joy we watched him reaching out for us one last time before drifting off into a deep slumber.

''Quick thinking on the leaves Shade,'' Marina complimented with a giggle.

Shade smiled. ''Thanks, let's get out of here.'' He let go of my arm so Marina could hold me alone and then lead us away from the two sleeping beauties.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Meanwhile, in a completely different part of the forest, General Brutus was thinking about battle strategies against all bats in the north and particularly the Silverwing colony of the lawbreaker Shade.

''If we move the seventh squadron here to the valley...''

With his wingtip he drew a line on his makeshift plan drawn in the snow with some nuts and looked up to see his son standing a few feet away, staring off into the distance.

''Orestes!'' he called out, ''are you paying attention?''

The young owl rolled his eyes with a sigh, ''Why?'' he asked, ''War is pointless, father. I believe the answer lies in diplomacy.''

The general raised his eyebrow at his son's utterance and turned away with a huff. Owlets these days! He really liked to know how he got to such a pacifist for a son? Back when he was his age he had eagerly listened to his fathers battle plans and even came up with a few ideas of his own. But Orestes...

 _He really takes too much after his mother._ Brutus let out a deep sigh and then turned around as the sound of wings caught his attention. Watching Lieutenant Atlas landing down beside him.

''General Brutus, I've come to report that operation retributive justice was successfully executed.''

Hearing this, Orestes eyes widen. He knew exactly what operation R. J. meant and he couldn't believe his father seriously commanded it. But unlike him, Brutus was pleased by this message and smiled. ''Excellent. Any signs of the Silverwings?''

Atlas shook his head. ''No sir.''

Brutus frowned. ''Whatever, we will find them sooner or later. For now, send a squadron over to the southwest area. We shall look for them there.''

''Yes, sir.''

''Uh, dad. May I be excused to go back to my studies? I've noticed a rather interesting looking arachnid on that tree over there and I...''

''Fine!'' snapped Brutus, getting irritated by his sons love for useless insects and flew off with his Lieutenant. Left behind Orestes waited until they both were mere points in the sky and then quickly flew off into the other direction. He needed to find his friends as soon as possible.

* * *

 **AN:**

 _ **Thanks Nocturna, our friends have escaped their captives. But for how long will they be safe?**_

 _ **We will find out soon.**_

 _ **Also,**_ ** _thank you Carlisle-Fan-22 for your opinion on the title name of chapter 21. :)_**

 ** _I think you are right with what you say, Murphy's law really does fit perfectly. Hence I will keep it._**


	22. Operation R J

**Chapter 22: Operation R. J.**

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV ~**

''Are you sure your colony was headed this way?'' Marina asked skeptically as we flew over the forest. The weather was getting much colder by now. And it was no doubt that winter was almost here. I felt glad that I was wearing my warm native American outfit instead of a simple leaf dress. Otherwise, I would've soon frozen to death in no time.

''Positive,'' Shade assured us with confidence, causing Marina to sigh.

''Then we're not out of trouble yet.''

I wondered what she meant by that but then I looked up and set my eyes upon a majestically high mountain before us covered in snow. The view was incredible but I didn't like the idea of flying over that. Especially since it seemed to be hundreds of miles up into the sky where it would be definitely a lot more colder than in it was already down here.

''Shade are you sure that this is the right way?'' Marina asked as we took roost on a tree at the foot of the mountain, ''Because as far as I know, my colony doesn't migrate over any mountains.''

''Well, Maybe mine does.''

''And maybe we will fly up there and freeze our fur off.''

Shade sighed impatiently, ''Look, Goth and Throbb could wake up any second... I'll look in my sound-map. That should get us back on track.''

Marina nodded, still looking worried about this and fiddled with her band.

I also put my hand on my own wrist and for a moment I was surprised why it was uncovered. But then I remembered that Goth had torn the bandage off earlier while treating me to do much worse he gets his teeth into my skin. I gulped not liking to think about this and pulled my arm closer to my chest. To make matters worse my wrist also started to itch now and it was hard to resist the urge to scratch.

Finally, Shade opened his eyes back up again. ''We definitely fly up that mountain,'' he explained, ''We go past the trees and then…uh...then we fly through a wolf's ears?''

 _Uh what?_

''Are you out of your roost?!'' Marina tapped at her head with her claw. ''A wolf's not a landmark!''

''But it is what my mother sang to me.''

''It's pretty much useless,'' she snapped, ''It means nothing, except your mother wanted you to get killed.''

''H-hey that's not ...''

''Guys would you please, stop arguing. It doesn't help,'' I said and looked at them both, ''Let's focus more on our way to Hibernaculum. I mean we know we headed for mountains. So we just need to keep on going and hope Shade recognizes the right place. And think about it, should Goth and Throbb wake up and follow our trail they won't last long up there in the cold.''

''True, but neither will we,'' Marina said.

I got silent again and nodded, knowing she was right.

''Come on guys we better go. Dawn is coming soon,'' Shade flew back up with me dangling under his feet and Marina following us.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV~**

After a long and hard flight, the Silverwings managed to cross the icy mountains without any difficulties and landed on the power lines over a freeway that passed through the mountains for a short but well-needed rest.

Bathsheba thought this was the good moment to gloat over her triumph in front of Frieda.

''Well, here we are. Safely over the pass without incident, I might add,'' she said without even trying to hide that smugly grin on her face, ''as you can see my leadership is paying off.''

''The colony has voted. We must follow Bathsheba,'' Ariel said and Frieda, who roosted next to her, nodded in agreement. Mercury and Chinook, however, were not so happy about this. Chinook even shook his head, showing his disagreement. He would like it better if Frieda was still the chief elder of their colony but for now, it was Bathsheba, and he couldn't do anything about it.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV~**

''Trust me Marina all this stuff is on the sound-map. Those rocks...eh...these threes...''

''Yeah but no wolves. If that's even what we are looking for?,'' she flew down to another tree and hung upside down from its branch, ''It still doesn't make sense. No bat would fly between a wolfs ears.'' Shade didn't say anything and just landed me on top of the branch before roosting next to Marina. ''Face it Shade, either your sound-map is wrong or you've- huh!'' Suddenly she gasped and I looked down wondering what was wrong.

At first, I saw nothing but then I noticed something big in the air before us. However, I couldn't figure out what it was. The image was just too blurry to make out a certain shape. And...wait! Did I just heard a wolf growling?

Seconds later the image was gone and I blinked a few times, wondering what just happened.

''Nice try Shade,'' Marina said with a chuckle, ''keep practicing that echo projection you may fool somebody yet.''

My eyes lit up hearing her say this. Did I just saw a real echo projection? How was this possible? I'm a human I shouldn't be able to that. Then again... didn't Zephyr said that I might be able to see echos as well after a bit of practice?! But I didn't remember doing something that would have helped me in this case so what's going on here?

Marina looked up at the horizon. ''Guys I think we should find a place to sleep. It's almost sunrise.

Shade swung himself back up on the branch and climbed around on the tree until he found what he was looking for. ''Here is a knothole. We can spend the day inside there.

Marina nodded and grabbed me by my hands to fly me over to the entrance then crawled inside, followed by me and Shade.

The next evening I woke up, hearing Shade crying out in alarm.

''Guys, you have to come out and see this. Something is wrong. Terribly wrong.''

''W-what are you talking about Shade?'' I asked drowsily and sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. Shade hopped over and grabbed my arm, pulling me up to my feet, ''You need to see this Its..its... I don't know just come!'' Grudgingly I followed him to the entrance.

''There do you see it?''

I rubbed my eyes again and peaked outside. It was like the whole world was transformed over the day. Yesterday the grass was all green with colorful leaves here and there in piles on the ground. But now everything looked like it was covered in a thick white blanket. And so bright.

Glowing in the moonlight the snow formed hills on the bases of the trees and cloaking the branches, so they look soft and fat. It was beautiful. But where was the problem Shade was talking about?

''Do you see it Vanessa?'' Shade asked me again.

I frowned and looked closer around but couldn't spot anything odd.

''See what Shade? There is nothing!''

''Of course there is,'' he said with annoyance, ''It's pretty much everywhere.''

I still didn't get what he meant and looked more around.

Woken up by our talking Marina soon joined us as well.

''Guys, do you have to be so loud?'' she yawned, ''The sun barely set and wake up the whole forest.''

''Marina something is wrong here! Look at all this...white stuff.''

 _White Stuff? ... Moment!_

Shade anxiously looked around and pointed to the snow on the branch. ''Its everywhere,'' he continued and then frowned, clenching his fists, ''Oh, I'm sure the owls are behind this. They are trying to They're trying to divert us from our course by changing the environment. But we will not let that pass. Come on we...

''Shade, what in Nocturna's name are you babbling about?''

''Wait I think I got it,'' I said before he could even open his mouth. ''Shade the ''the white stuff'' you are talking about the whole time ... is called snow. And is has absolutely nothing to do with the owls.''

The Silverwing looked at me blankly. ''W-what?''

''Yeah, she is right. It's like rain but more ... compact. And totally harmless.''

Shade kept looking between me and Marina. ''So you are meaning to tell me that this stuff is normal and nothing to ... gah!'' Carefully reaching forward to touch a pile of snow on the branch, Shade suddenly jumped back when a tiny snowflake landed on his nose tip, followed by thousands of others. Softly they fell from the sky and danced along towards the ground.

''Ok, this is definitely your first winter Shade,'' Marina chuckled.

Shade grumbled a bit in embarrassment.

''I'ts alright,'' I tried to reassure him while trying not to laugh as well, ''There is always a first time for everything.

''Have you ever seen snow before Vanessa?''

''Yes but it's been a while. We don't get snow that often where I'm from,'' I explained.

''Speaking of,'' Marina said, ''You never told us where exactly you are from?''

''Oh, well, my home country is far away from here in the east. You'd need to cross the ocean to get there.''

They both looked at me in amazement. ''The ocean?''

''Lots of water. More than in a lake or the sea.''

''Wow!''

''If it's so far,'' Marina frowned thoughtfully, ''How did you manage to get here?''

''We humans have our ways to cross long distances in a short among of time and with less effort as possible.''

''Oh, you mean like those flying machines?''

I nodded. ''Yep, just like those. We call them planes by the way and one of those brought me up north in the first place.''

''I see,'' Shade said.

I smiled a bit then turned to Marina, hearing a soft growl coming from her stomach.

''Well, I don't know about you guys but I'm starving. I say we grab some bugs and then be on our way. It's a long flight up to the top of the mountains.

''Sure but what are we going to eat Marina? I don't see or hear any insects around.''

She smiled at him. ''Don't worry, there is still food. Come on I'll show you.'' And with that she flew off from the roost and then landed on the ground near the roots of an elm. Shade followed her quickly and carried me along with him. At Marina's side he gently dropped me into the snow and landed as well.

The snow itself wasn't very deep. Or at least it wouldn't be for my original size. In my shrunken form however, the snow went up to my knees. And cold. Brrr. Why couldn't that doll in Marina's Island wear pants instead of a skirt? I tried my best to ignore the cold and moved over to my friend to see what they are looking at.

''See that?'' Marina asked and pointed down at some specks of dirt in the smooth snow. But when I looked closer I noticed some of them moving or rather leaping around.

''Those are snow fleas,'' Marina explained, ''There are usually a lot of them during this time of the year.''

Both bats fluttered from tree to tree, snapping up fleas and other insects like beetles and ants, the cocoon of a moth and a sack of praying mantis eggs hanging from a twig and poking out through the snow. I was glad to see them gathering enough food for themselves. But what was I supposed to eat? With all the snow it was hard to find any berries that I could eat. The ones I did find were either frozen or not edible.

 _I hope I will find some food for me soon,_ I thought with concern, _Otherwise I'll be forced to eat insect if I don't wish to starve._

A few moments later my friends landed back by me on the snow, looking full and happy.

''You are amazing,'' Shade said to Marina while looking at her with admiration sparkling in his eyes.

She laughed. ''It's just your first winter. So you didn't know.''

''How did you learn all this stuff?''

The smile on Marina's face vanished and she looked away. ''My parents taught me,'' she said softly.

Shade and I looked at each other and I could see that he was sorry for reminding her of the family she had lost.

''Uhm, your parents must be nice bats if they taught you so much,'' I said and regretted it at the same time because I feared I dug deeper into the wound. Fortunately, she didn't seem to mind and even smiles a bit again.

''Yeah, my mother was always very kind to me and others. My father, on the other hand, was more of a strict character,'' she said.

''I see.''

Marina sighed. ''He was also ... among the males who were supposed to chase me away after I got my band.''

I nodded and then glanced around, looking for something to change the topic with. Then a snowflake landed on my nose, causing me to sneeze. Marina chuckled softly, seeing this and jumped back into the air. ''Hey, let's see which one of us can catch the most snowflakes.''

''Alright!'' Shade grinned and followed after her with me grabbing his feet.

All three of us laughed and giggled as we flew between the dancing snowflakes.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV~**

Cold, hungry, and extremely pissed off, Goth and Throbb had woken up from their short nap and were now following the faint scent of Shade and his friends.  
Unlike them, they did not appreciate the beauty of the falling snow. Goth rather cursed it in the name of the almighty Zotz.  
Nevertheless, he would not give up. No matter how cold he felt he would keep on flying until he got those pathetic pipsqueaks into his grasps. And then he would rip out their hearts and eat them one by one.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV~**

Not much later the weather changed and our fun little game came to an end.  
The initial soft snowfall quickly turned into a heavy storm. The wind howled in my ears, nearly throwing the hood off my head and I noticed how difficult it became for Shade and Marina to fly through the relentless blizzard.

''Okay ... this isn't fun anymore,'' Shade said. Marina nodded and then hissed like she was in pain or something.

''This band is stinging my arm,'' she said glaring at it, ''My colony was right., this thing is a curse.'' She looked back at us her face softens a little. ''Maybe we should turn back.''

''We can't give up now Marina,'' Shade grunted and tried his best to keep flying against this ruthless storm. I shook my head and tried to get some snow off my face that landed on me. I would've used one of my hands to wipe it off but then I'd probably lost my grip on Shades feet. Something I don't want to risk in such weather. It was difficult enough for me to hang on with both of my hands.

''She is right. We need to stop. There is no way we can make it through the snowstorm.''

''Now, come on guys the next landmark is probably just a few wing beats ahead.''

''But we won't be able to see it in this mess,'' Marina said.

''Shade, please have you forgotten what happened to us the last time we flew through a storm? This is ten times worse.''

Shade looked down at me as good as he could and tried to protest again as a heavy gust of snow seized us, throwing us away.

''SHADE! VANESSA!'' Marina called out and quickly dashed after us. I shut my eyes and felt myself swirling around. I lost any sense of direction, could not tell what was up and what was down anymore. To make things worse I lost my grip on Shade's feet and was now falling towards the ground like a big hailstone.

Eventually, my body hit the ground and I immediately dunk into a huge pile of soft, cold snow. There I kept lying for a few seconds to catch my breath and to calm myself down from the shock before I climbed back to the surface. Brr, the snow felt ice-cold and I once again cursed the doll back at Marinas island for not having any mittens on. I could've really used them right now.  
However, frozen fingers or not I knew I couldn't stay there and continued to climb out of the snow.

When I was back up again I first noticed that the storm was as bad as before, making it quite difficult to see through it.  
Where were Shade and Marina? ''GUYS?'' I tried calling out for them through the storm. ''SHADE...MARINA. WHERE ARE YOU?'' No answer.

I got up to my feet and took a few steps through the snow while holding one arm up to my face in order to shield my face from the wind and the snow.  
Something hard caused me to trip, as my foot stepped against it and I sprawled right back into the snow. ''Uff!'' _Just great. What was that?_ I thought while getting up on my knees.  
Curiously I looked closer at what brought me to fall but couldn't figure out what it should be.  
At first, I thought it was a twig. But it didn't quite right. Also, there seemed to be something thin and wide hanging underneath it. A flag? No too small. But maybe a child's toy or something.

I gently ran my fingers over the strange twig and noticed a part that looked like a piece had broken off from it. Weird. For some reason that reminded me of something. But what?

''Hmm...'' I brushed off some snow to get a better look as I noticed the other end of the thing looking a bit tattered like it was forcefully ripped off from something. Also, there was something white sticking out of it. Not snow more like ... Bone!

I felt like my heart stopped for a moment as I glanced down on what was lying before me. Fearing the worst I shoveled more snow out of the way, not caring about the cold and stared with horror at what was lying before me.

This was indeed no twig. It was a wing. A bat's wing. Dead and brutally ripped off from its owner. But what shocked me more was that I knew who it once belonged too: Abraham Greywing.  
The same old bat my friends and I encountered before our arrival in the city. The one who said Marina and I would only bring bad luck if we were to travel with them. Only because one of us had a band and the other was a human.

What on earth happened to him to lose his wing? And what about his colony.

A shiver went through my body as the cold wind blew against my clothes. Like in trance I slowly turned around, having a very bad feeling in my guts and immediately regretted it.  
Everywhere around where wings and other body parts of bats. Snagged on spiky branches and scattered over the white snow. And they were all Greywings. Thousands of them. Males, females, adults and even young pups.

Not able to avoid my gaze on what I saw I didn't notice my friends landing behind me, calling my name.

''Vanessa! Oh thanks Nocturna, you are alright.'' Marina said with relief and hugged me tightly.  
''I thought something had happened to you and Shade after the storm blew you two away.''

''Where is Shade?''

''He's here with me,'' Marina said, finally letting go of me, ''He managed to get himself back into the air before the wind could throw him onto a nearby tree ...ehm.. say, Vanessa is something wrong? You look so pale. What happened?''

I didn't give her an answer and just kept staring at the gruesome scene before us. ''I'm fine,'' I said hoarsely, ''But they aren't.'' I pointed ahead and Marina turned around confused and then gasped in terror at the gruesome sight before us.

''W-what...?''

''Owls,'' Shade said grimly as he landed between us ''Lots of them.''  
Like hypnotized I averted my eyes from dead bodies and looked down to see hundreds of white and brown feathers spread all over the ground.  
I gulped. Those Greywings. There were just on their way to their winter roost and the owls attacked them. Why? Because of that stupid proclamation from that stupid General.

To make it even worse it didn't even look like the owls came to eat them. They just broke their necks, threw them against the trees or tore off their wings while they were still alive, leaving them to die in the snow.

''They probably didn't know anything,'' Shade said choking at his words, ''Nothing about the closed sky and the owls just came along and ... slaughtered them.''

''I hate Goth and Throbb,'' growled Marina with tears sparkling in her eyes, ''This is their fault too. If they hadn't killed those stupid pigeons, this wouldn't have happened.''

I had a feeling something like this would happen but I had hoped all bats would make it to their winter roosts before the owls closed the sky and that they would be safe. At least for the winter.  
But not these Greywings. Who knew how far the owl messengers had spread the word and how many bats already befall the same fate. What if it were the Silverwings?

As if thinking the same Shade grounded his jaws together and clenched his fists. ''I wish I were like Goth,'' he said, ''I'd kill them all. I really would. I'd just kill them...''

Marina walked over to him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder for comfort.  
''We should get away from here. They might come back.''

''I want them to come back,'' he raged, ''I want to get one just one of them. I...'' he suddenly started sobbing and his words merged together. After a moment he managed to calm himself down and clenched his whole body until he stopped shaking. He took a ragged breath and looked away. ''I'm sorry.''

Marina shook her head. ''For what?'' she said wiping away her own tears, ''But we really should go now.''

Shade nodded sadly. ''Yeah.''

He got airborne and wordlessly flew over to me to grab my hands with his feet once again before following Marina back into the sky. I forced myself not to look back on the dead bats and felt tears of my own, forming in my eyes.

* * *

 **~Third Person POV~**

Meanwhile, the Silverwings had made their way through the mountains and were now roosting close to an airport.

''This field has always been off-limits,'' Mercury insisted, hanging across Bathsheba, Ariel, Chinook and Frieda, ''The human flying machines are too dangerous.''

''You are my scout!'' Bathsheba hissed angrily at him, ''How dare you question me?!''

''You were the one who said we should stay on the migration route,'' Ariel said to her with a frown, earning a deadly glare from her leader.

''I'll deal with your insolence later. In the meantime, you will all follow me.'' And with that, she flew off from her roost and let the colony over the fence and into the dangerous airport.

Frieda let out a deep, doubtingly sigh before flying after the colony, followed by Ariel, Mercury and Chinook.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV~**

We kept flying for what felt like hours. The storm was still there and made it difficult for us to keep on course.

''Guys we can't keep this on. We need to roost and wait for the storm to end.'' Marina shouted over the howling wind.

''Alright, but where?''

Good question. With all the snow blowing around it was hard to find a cave or a tree to land on.  
But then I spotted something in the distance. A lone, little chalet, covered in snow  
At first, I thought it was just a mirage but when I looked closer as far as I could, I was sure it was real. ''Guys over there!'' I said loudly while pointing at the hut with my foot. Both bats flew over to the snowed roof and circled around the chimney.

''I don't know. You really think it's safe?'' Marina asked skeptically, ''What if there are humans inside?''

''There are no lights in the windows and no smoke coming from the chimney. It must be empty.'' I told her.

''We need to risk it. We will freeze to death if we stay in this cold any longer.'' With that Shade flew down into the chimney, closely followed by Marina until we came out of the dusty fireplace.

After landing on the ground we began brushing off the snow on our fur and clothes, shivering.  
''Brr.'' Marina scooped off some snow from her wing as her band shimmered slightly as she did so.  
Suddenly there was a whisper coming from above. ''One of us,'' it said, ''one of us.''

I stiffed, feeling crept out a bit and moved closer to my friends. ''What's going on?'' I asked quietly.''

Shade shook his head and grabbed my arm. ''No idea, but I think we better leave.''

''Wait!'' Marina hissed to him.''

The sound of wings rustling came from all around us now. And then another voice near the ceiling said: ''Yes, she's one of us.'' Then another in the far end of the room: ''You are right. She is one of us!''

Shade, Marina and I looked at each other in total confusion, before Shade grasped me by the hands and flew up with Marina to the top of a bookshelf.

''Who's there?'' Marina demanded to know over the growing voices, causing them to calm down a little. What happened next astonished us all together.

* * *

 **AN:**

 ** _There we go another chapter of Promise of the Night. :)_**

 ** _Please read and review._**


	23. Nocturna's Promise

**Chapter 23: Nocturna's Promise**

* * *

The ceiling, the walls and nearly every corner in the chalet was filled with hundreds of bats.  
Bats from different colonies. There were Silverwings, Greywings, Brownwings, Brightwings and many more. Bats with black faces and small mouse-shaped noses, pale bats with funny looking large ears, bats with long multicolored fur and bats with huge snouts, dappled fur and small sad eyes.

A bunch of them detached themselves from their roosting place and fluttered around us with a warm smile on their faces and I noticed something that they all had in common. They were all banded.

''I can't believe it.'' Marina breathed with excitement, watching the bats.

Then a female with brown fur and red hair landed next to us on the bookshelf.  
''Hi, I'm Betty,'' she greeted us friendly, ''What's your name?''

''I'm Marina,'' Marina said and pointing at herself then motioned towards Shade and me, ''and these are Shade and Vanessa. ... Hey, you are a Brightwing.''  
Betty nodded, chuckling softly. ''They used to call me Penelope,'' she said.

Marina gasped and walked closer to her. ''Penelope Brightwing? You are from my colony! The elders told us you were dead; that your band was bad luck.''

''Your elders lied Marina, they were ignorant and superstitious.'' we looked up and noticed another bat landing among us. This one was a large adult male with green fur and impressive long ears.  
''I'm Scirocco,'' he said smiling, ''Welcome.''

I couldn't help noticing that his greeting was directed mainly at Marina while he gave Shade just a short nod and ignored me completely. Well, this could be because I was kind of hiding behind my friends with my hood covering my face. So he probably didn't see me at all. But still ...

Scirocco walked over to Marina and gently took her by the hand, eyeing her band.  
''Hmm, yes ... very nice. And it's new.''

''The humans banded me in the spring,'' Marina said smiling.

''And do you know the importance of it? Do you know it's part of Nocturna's Promise?''  
Marina looked over to us, then looked down with a sad sigh.

''What's the matter?'' Betty asked.

''I used to think that,'' she said softly, ''I really thought my band was special, but then we met those giant southern bats.''

''They're cannibals from the jungle!'' Shade interrupted her quickly, ''And they have bands too.''

There was an instant turmoil among the banded bats and everyone chattered with fear about what they just heard.

''Oh no!''

''Cannibals!''

''How can that be?''

Scirocco, however, didn't seem to be alarmed like the rest. Instead, he looked back at Marina with a calm expression on his face. ''Ah- but did they have bands like these?'' he asked, pointing at his own silver band, shining on his left wrist.

''No, they aren't shiny like ours,'' Marina replied, looking down on her own band.

''Obviously, those bands aren't part of the great plan.'' Scirocco placed his claws together, smiling haughtily.

I exchanged a short look with Shade. Both of us wondering what this guy was talking about. But Marina was immediately hooked.

''Plan? What plan?'' she asked excitedly.

''All in good time, Marina.''

''There is a plan? Tell me. Please,'' Marina begged and I have to admit that I was also interested to know the secrets of the promise of a goddess I barely knew much about. Betty also seemed eager to tell Marina about Nocturna's plan and looked up at Scirocco, who nodded shortly, allowing her to speak.

''The humans banded us as part of Nocturna's Promise to return as to the light. We're going to reclaim the day as humans.''

 _Say what?_ I was dumbfounded. _Humans? Seriously?_

''Hold on a wing beat. You're gonna turn into humans?'' Shade asked raising an eyebrow in confusion.''

Penelope nodded. ''The transformation has already begun.'' Shade huffed and rolled his eyes in disbelieve.

''Let me prove it to you,'' said Scirocco before swooping down from the bookshelf onto the wooden floor. Around us, the banded bands began chattering with excitement.

''He's gonna do it.''

''The transformation!''

''He's going to transform!''

Scirocco stood before the cold fireplace and moved slowly back into the darkness while the bats started to chant in chorus.

''Transform ... transform ... transform ...'' Repeating it over and over. It kinda reminded me of some sort of weird cult and their creepy rituals. The banded bats kept singing with excitement and to my shock, I noticed that Marina was now singing too. Her eyes were focusing the fireplace with aspiration, and she made no sign that showed she still perceived that Shade and I were still here as well. She was totally hypnotized by their singing which got louder and louder. Then it suddenly stopped and out of the fireplace came a bat-sized human male with dark skin and abnormally large ears. He was wearing a yellow basketball tricot and yellow shorts while holding a little basketball under his left arm.

I gasped softly not believing my eyes. This can't be. I thought and looked a bit closer. The human on the floor looked up at us with a confident smile on his face. But there something odd.  
I blinked thinking I was seeing things but no. When I looked back at it again I could clearly see that the tiny human was flickering like a hologram. I hummed and looked suspiciously at all the bats around in the room. There was certainly something fishy going on here. I felt it in my guts.

The human went back into the fireplace again and this time Scirocco flew out, looking like his normal bat-self and flew back to us on the bookshelf.

''That was unbelievable,'' Marina breathed.

''You said it,'' Shade agreed but the sound of his voice told me he meant it differently.

''I always knew the humans had a plan for us.''

''What?'' Shade exclaimed and I also could not believe what she just said.''  
He grabbed Marina by the shoulder and pulled her towards him.

''Marina, he echo projected that human.''

''No, it was real,'' Marina insisted, glaring at him, ''It wasn't all blurry like your echo projection.''

''Hey, I'm still learning,'' Shade protested, looking a bit hurt by her words.

''He's right, Marina," I said softly, trying to talk some sense into her. ''The human was not real. It may have looked that way, but it was definitely a fake.''

''How do you know if it was fake or not. You aren't even able to see echo projection at all. And that you saw the human just proves how real it is.'' Marina blurred out at me.

''Yeah, but...''

Marina turned back to the leader of the banded bats not wanting to listen to Shade or me anymore.

''Join us,'' Scirocco said, looking at her kindly, ''Wait with us for the coming of the light. It won't be long.''

''Yes, stay!'' came a voice from among the banded bats. And another one: ''Please stay!''

''Yeah, please stay with us!

Soon a chorus went up from all the other bats: ''Stay, stay!''

''Yes, please stay Marina! It already feels like we are friends,'' Betty pleaded and Marina looked at her and all the other banded bats who wished for her to stay with them. A bright smile appeared on Marina's face. Then she looked back at Shade.

''Why don't we stay here?'' she asked him.

I blinked. Staying here? Just like that when we surely have a mission to accomplish?

Before Shade could say something I stepped out from behind him and walked up to Marina, ignoring that everyone was able to see me, right there on the spot.

''Are you out of your roost?'' I snapped at her furiously, ''Have you forgotten that we need to find Shade's colony, to warn them because of the owls and Goth and Throbb? How can you just suggest that we stay here among bats we know nothing about and forget about our mission? How can you be so naive?!'' The more words went out of me the angrier I got. I really couldn't believe that Marina was just thinking of staying here instead of continuing or way to Hibernaculum. Eventually, I stopped and just stared at her with my arms crossed before my chest waiting for a response coming from her. Instead, it was Scirocco who spoke once more.

''Tsk, tsk. You earthbound rodent have no understanding for Nocturna and her great promise to us bats.'' He crossed his arms and looked at me condescendingly, as if I was not worthy to learn anything about it at all. ''You just don't have the connection to the humans like we do.''

''Oh, I believe my connection to humans is way closer than yours,'' I said glaring at him.

Scirocco rolled his eyes with a huff and was about to make another remark when I threw my hood out of my face, revealing my human face to everyone.

''Great Nocturna!'' The surprised look in the green bat's eyes was priceless. He for sure hadn't expected to see a real tiny human. Suddenly there was a turmoil among the other banded bats and I glanced up to see them all staring down at me with their mouths and eyes open wide.

I couldn't help but started to feel a bit embarrassed by the attention I got.

''Who is this?'' one of them asked.

''Is this a real human?''

''How could she transform herself so perfectly?''

''Yeah, I thought Scirocco was the only one who could do this by now?''

The banded bats started chattering louder and louder, wondering about what and who I was.  
I felt so uncomfortable at that moment that I wished nothing more than to disappear right on the spot. Too bad, I couldn't teleport. Instead, I just looked down and stared at my feet.

''Indeed, what a surprise'' Scirocco said, causing me to look back up at him. ''My Lady, may I ask what's your name again?''

''Eh...ehm Vanessa.'' I replied.

''A beautiful name. Excuse me my curiosity but when did you manage to transform yourself completely into a human being?''

''I beg your pardon?''

''Your hands, your face. Everything is most perfectly shaped for a human body instead of a bat. Even your scent smells like the one of a human my lady.'' Scirocco said while gently taking my hand up to his nose, sniffing it softly.

''Eh, yeah ... that's because I actually am a human and not a bat that got transformed into one.'' I explained and carefully pulled my hand away from him again. But the long-eared bat didn't seem to be convinced by what I said.

''I see you've already moved on from your former life as a bat to be fully able to become a part of Nocturna's great plan.''

''What? No!'' I exclaimed, ''I really am a human. I just got shrunk. That's why I'm so small. If I had been transformed into a human I would be much larger. Also, I don't have a band like you guys have.'' I held up my arm, showing him and the others my left wrist with the healing scars I got from Goth.

''I think I know what happened.'' Scirocco said, grasping my hand once again, eyeing the scars on my wrist, ''Someone must have ripped off your band as you were changing. That's why your transformation isn't complete and you still the size of a bat.''

 _That's it. This guy is nuts._ I thought and didn't say anything more.  
Scirocco smiled, probably thinking he guessed right. Then he offered me to stay here among him and the banded bats as he did earlier with Marina. ''Your knowledge and your experience of being a human for much longer than every one of us is of great importance. Therefore, I hope that you and your friend here will accept our offer and stay with us.''

I gulped and thought about what to say now. There was no way I could bring some sense into his mind and convince him to believe my words. So letting him and the rest of the banded bats believe I was the only bat that already managed to change herself into a complete human more or less, seemed to be the only option for now.

''Come on Vanessa, Shade... Why don't we stay here? It doesn't have to be forever guys.'' Marina said, having a pleading look in her eyes.

I looked away, avoiding her gaze. ''Fine,'' I muttered softly under my breath and turned to Shade.  
''Maybe staying here won't be so bad. At least for a few days or something.'' Shade wanted to say something but Scirocco interrupted him quickly.

''I'm sorry but the Silverwing can't stay.''

''Why not?'' I demanded to know, even though I had kind of expected something like this.

''He is not one of the chosen ones,'' Scirocco said, ''Nocturna would be angry if we let the unworthy stay. She might decide to hold all of us back from the transformation. Without a band, there is no promise.''

''Hey I don't have a band ... anymore.'' I reminded him.

Scirocco nodded. ''Yes which is why your transformation never got finished. Now think about what could happen to all of us if there was someone among us who never got a band in the first place.

''But my father had a band,'' Shade protested, ''and the elder of ...''

''That doesn't matter,'' Scirocco interrupted him, shaking his head, ''Those who are not banded will never become human. They will die in the dark with all the others who haven't been chosen.''  
He turned and looked directly at Shade with a sympathetic look in his eyes. ''I'm sorry but this is the truth.''

Shade looked away, his expression hardened.

''Shade?'' Marina asked worried and put a hand on her friend's shoulder but the Silverwing gently brushed her hand away.

''You stay,'' he said quietly. She shook her head, sadness filling her eyes. Shade smiled softly and turned back to Marina and me. ''You've got to,'' he said,'' You've got to stay. Both of you. Marina, all the time you wished to be part of a colony again after losing your former one because of your band. Here none will send you away because of it. And you Vanessa ...,'' he stopped shortly, letting out a deep sigh, ''You know we never knew exactly why you got so small and why you are able to understand our language. But do you remember what Frieda said about Nocturna's Promise? Maybe it means that you had come here to be with all these banded bats.''

''But ...'' I started but Shade shook his head.

''I'm going to find my colony.''

Marina blinked, trying to hold back her tears as she unhappily scratched the wood beneath her feet.  
''It's not that far, right? You are probably almost there.'' She looked at him desperately. ''You will be alright, won't you?''

He nodded vigorously. ''Oh sure, I know the rest of the way. I've got the map. You guys helped me a lot,'' he said then took a look out of the window. Following his gaze, I noticed that the storm outside was over and that it won't be much longer until sunrise. ''I should get going.'' Shade looked back at us and gave us another soft and sad smile.  
I felt tears burning in my eyes. I didn't want him to go. He was my best friend. The only one I ever had. I liked Marina too but Shade never judged me because of anything from the day we met. How could I just let him go like this? Then again, maybe he was right and the reason I got shrunk was to be here with the banded bats. But what if not? Would I ever be able to see him again?

Not wanting to lengthen this farewell more than necessary I walked up to Shade and hugged him tightly while Marina did the same.

''I'll miss you guys,'' he whispered, hugging us back.

''We too. Goodbye and good luck. Hopefully, you will find your colony.''

Shade nodded once again, then he carefully went out from our embrace and flew off from the bookshelf and back up into the chimney, without looking back.

''Don't be sad Shade will be fine,'' Betty said, giving us a comforting smile and I really hoped that she was right.

* * *

 **AN:**

 _ **I'm having a flow :D XD Jokes apart, this chapter is another one I didn't need to change much from the old version. That's why I could upload it so quick. The goes for the next one so I might upload this one today as well. If not then definitely tomorrow.**_


	24. Party in the hut

**Chapter 24: Party in the hut**

* * *

Shade was gone and I still couldn't believe it. Didn't we agree to find his colony all together?  
But now he was out on his own while Marina and I stood behind to stay here in this chalet with the banded bats. And even though Marina looked happy to be with bats who won't segregate her because of her band, she probably missed Shade as much as I did already.

I felt wrong at this place and I didn't believe a word from what Shade said about it had to be my destiny to be with these bats. Who cares? I'd sworn to myself I'd help my friend find his colony and I was not about to break that promise now. If these bats really need me then they can wait until I'll come back. Then again, ... maybe it was right for me to be here. Maybe it was important like Shade said. Argh, it was so confusing. I sighed deeply wondering what I should do as I felt a hand on my shoulder. Turning around I noticed Betty standing behind me with a concerned look on her face.

''Are you alright?'' she asked and I nodded smiling.

''Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about my friend that's all.''

She nodded understandingly. ''I know how you must feel. Losing a friend is never easy but don't worry you and Marina will quickly grow to love it here.''

I still had my doubts about it but I didn't object as two more bats landed beside me after Betty left.  
One was a female with red hair and small round ears and the other a pudgy male with blue-green fur and long rabbit-like ears. As he greeted me he showed two large canine teeth in his upper jaw, making him look like a vampire bunny bat or something.

''Hello, I'm Cassandra,'' the female said.

''And my name's Boris,'' the male energetically added.

''Ehm, ... hi,'' I greeted them, feeling a bit unsure about their enthusiasm.

''It's so great to meet the first bat, who got turned into a human. I bet you must be blessed by Nocturna herself,'' Cassandra said cheerfully.

''Well, actually...''

''Just too bad your band got ripped off before you could grow as well. Finally, being a human but still stuck in mouse size. Too bad!''

''Yeah, but tell us how did it feel getting turned into a human?''

I quickly gave up convincing them to believe me I was never a bat at all. Instead, I told them as much as I could about the blue pearl, the bright light and how I ended up in Shades colony.  
Of course, they kept on believing the pear or more the bright light turned me into a bat sized human instead of shrinking me.

Both kept asking me more and more questions about how it felt being human and all and if I missed anything about my former bat life.

I just wanted them to leave.

Eventually, after what felt like hours, my prayers were answered and Betty came back to release me from those two. She told me that there was a surprise for me and let me towards a crack in the wooden door that led into another room.  
I followed her inside and found myself in a small bathroom with a bathtub, a sink, and a toilet.  
The moon was shining through a small window next to the sink. There I saw three more bats, all female, hovering above it.

Before I could ask what they were doing, Betty simply grabbed my hands with her feet and flew me up to the three ladies, who were all smiling at me friendly.  
One was a silverwing, the other two greywings.

''Hi...'' I greeted them shyly still wondering what was going on here. Then I looked down and noticed the sink half full of freshwater. I was truly amazed by the fact they had managed to fill the sink with water. Betty noticed my surprise and smiled happily.

''I thought you would like to have a warm bath after all the trouble on your journey. It must be hard to keep yourself warm since you don't have fur anymore.''

''Ehm...yeah,'' I said, wishing she and everyone else in this colony would stop with this nonsense.  
But a bath didn't sound so bad after all. I could really use one since the last time I cleaned myself completely was when I was back at the hotel before I got into this adventure. My hair was greasy for days and probably still had the smell and taste of salt from the seawater in it too.

Despite my protests, Betty and her friends helped me out of my clothes and I quickly jumped into the water before they could get a closer look at my bare body. Even though they were all female I felt kind of embarrassed being naked with four strange women around me.

While Betty and the silverwing collected my clothes and took them out the two greywings helped me with my bath and gave me some shampoo for my hair by squeezing some of it out of a little sample bottle and turned the faucet on, so I could wash it off again.  
Then after my hair and body was clean, the two greywings left as well, giving me some time for me to relax a little. It sure felt nice. The water wasn't too hot and really helped to warm myself up.  
With a sigh I leaned myself back in the sink and closed my eyes for a few minutes, enjoying this moment.

''I hope the water is to your utmost satisfaction,'' a manly voice suddenly said, causing me to shriek and to plunge deeper into the water with only my head sticking out of it.  
''I'm sorry I didn't mean to startle you, my lady,'' the voice said and I turned around to see Scirocco standing on the edge of the sink, an apology smile on his face.

''I just came to see if everything is alright.''

''Yeah, everything is...fine,'' I said feeling abashed and slightly angry about the fact that he had the nerve to come here without asking while I was taking a bath. Luckily the water and the foam in it hid my naked body before his eyes but I did notice him trying to get a glimpse of it for a second.

''I'm very pleased to hear that,'' he said smiling, ''In case you are finished now, may I bring you to the new clothes I've ordered for you?''

''Eh, ...sure but I need a towel first to dry myself up.'' _And to cover me up before you, you perv!_ I added in my thoughts. Scirocco nodded and offered me to bring me one as. To my relief, right then Betty came back with two little towels, that looked like ripped off pieces from a bigger one.

After she managed to get Scirocco to leave the room again, with I found very grateful, she gave me the towels, so I could dry myself up as I stepped out of the water on the edge of the sink next to the faucet. After this, I wrapped my body in one towel while drying off my hair with the other one before letting Betty carry me back down to the floor.

There I met the two greywing females again. They greeted me and showed me a dress that Scirocco had picked out for me to wear.

To put it bluntly, the dress was ... nice.  
It was a long light pink dress with long sheer sleeves, a white belt around the hips, decorated with tiny daisies and a transparent shoulder color with another small daisy attached in the middle.  
All in all, I had to admit, the dress was pretty, just not exactly something I would wear except if I happened to be in a Disney movie or something. However, not wanting to be rude I faked up a smile and put on the dress together with a necklace made out of tiny white pearls and a pair of golden-colored, doll-sized ballet shoes one of the female greywings gave me.  
Afterwards, they helped me brush my hair with a small toy brush and pulled it up into a nice bun with two strands of hair falling down on my face.

As they were finished I walked over to a broken piece of a mirror, leaning against the wall and took a good look on me. The dress was fitting nicely and looked indeed kind of pretty on me. But still, it was not exactly something I would've liked to be caught dead in it. Hopefully, I didn't have to wear this for too long.

''Do you like it?'' Betty asked me with a smile, wanting to be sure I was happy and all.

''Yeah, it's...beautiful but why do you give me that dress in the first place?''

''Well for the party of course,'' she replied gleefully.

''Party?''

''The welcome party for you and your friend of course.''  
Before I could ask her any more questions, Betty grabbed my hands with her feet and flew me back into the other room.  
There colorful lights filled room caused by multicolored glass shards, reflecting the moonlight. Disco music was playing from an old CD Player standing in a corner.

I surprised me that they got this thing to work. Then again they probably live here for a long time. And since they all want to become humans they had to figure out how to use human stuff right?!

Looking at all the bats which were flying and dancing around to the beat of the music I wondered where Marina was. I had not seen her anymore since Shade left. Then I found her, dancing with Cassandra and Boris on top of the bookshelf, looking like she was having the best time ever.  
It made me happy to see her smiling again but I also felt uneasy about this whole situation.  
It felt so wrong. We shouldn't have been here, we should be outside flying with Shade and search for his colony. Instead, we were here, at a party like nothing is wrong.

''Is there something bothering you my lady?''

I turned around to see Scirocco standing right behind me.  
 _Great,_ I thought, _What does he want from me now?_

''I have to say you look marvelous in this dress my dear. It suits you perfectly,'' he complimented me.

''Really? Well, eh...thank you.'' I said softly, unsure what to think of this.

''Why don't you come and join the party? I'm sure you will be enjoying it,'' he said.

''I don't know. Normally I don't go to parties.'' I admitted to him.

''But you will love this one, trust me. Here, may I offer this dance to you?''

Before I knew it, Scirocco gently took me by the hands and pulled me towards the middle of the room where he started dancing around with me.  
As we moved and circled around I led the Greenwing completely in charge while trying my best not to accidentally step on his foot or something. He was a great dancer I had to admit but I didn't like how we were dancing so close together with his hand on my hip.

''Doesn't this feel so much better, dancing around letting all your worries go past?'' he said as we circled around once more. ''Having you here with us is such a great pleasure to our colony.''

''Uh, ... really?''

''Yes,'' he said as we kept on dancing, ''Your transformation into a human may not be fully complete but your look, your scent. It is all human-like and no more like that of a bat. Your arrival here shows us all how close we are to the fulfilling of Nocturna's promise. With your help, I can figure out the last secret that will make it come true as soon as possible.''

I looked at him slightly confused, not only because of what he was talking about but also because of the fact of how he changed from first person plural into first person singular. What was he planning?  
Scirocco whirled us around one more time before he excused himself and flew off, leaving me with all the other dancing bats around.  
I wondered what he was up to and if I should follow him to see what he was doing but then it might be better if I got away from here. This was my chance. With all the banded bats dancing around, no one would even notice me leaving. All I needed to do first was to figure out where Betty hid my native American clothes. There was no way I would walk around outside wearing this dress.  
Also, did I want to talk with Marina and try to convince her to come with me and if not then I would go alone, knowing it would be nearly impossible for me to catch up with Shade all by myself. Nevertheless, I at least wanted to try it.

Suddenly a pair of hands grabbed me by the waist and whirled me around without warning, causing me to squeak in surprise. I expected to see Scirocco again but as I turned around I came face to face with Cassandra, Boris and a few other banded bats.

''Hey, Vanessa, come on let's dance together,'' Cassandra said cheerfully before she and one of her friends grabbed me by the arms and circled and whirled me around and even tossed me through the air, turning this group dance into an open-air acrobatic dance.

''What are you guys doing with her?'' I heard a familiar voice shouting up to us and got a short glance on Marina roosting on the wooden cupboard door, eyes open in horror.

Boris landed beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder.  
''Don't worry,'' he placated, ''Everything is alright. She is enjoying this.''

''It certainly doesn't sound like that, she is screaming.''

''Yeah, but with delight my dear. When I was migrating with my old colony we came across a huge place build by humans with big weird looking machines that moved around very fast tossing and turning the humans sitting inside all over the place. They too screamed but also seemed to like it very much. They even rode them multiple times.''

Marina didn't look very convinced as much as I could figure out while being tossed around in the air. Also, I was indeed screaming ... but not with joy.

* * *

 **~Shade's POV~**

It was still snowing as I flew through the night but at least the storm was gone. Despite my plan to fly as far from the hut as possible, I stopped right on the next rock just a few wingbeats away.  
With a deep sigh, I sat down on the stone thinking about what just happened.  
''Marina,'' I said wistfully and caught a snowflake with my tongue, ''I can't believe she was fooled by that big-eared phony. At least Vanessa was still on my side, maybe I should have let her come with me?'' A shadow appeared above me and for a second I thought it was my two friends but to my horror, it was Goth and Throbb and they were flying straight towards the hut.

Oh, Nocturna why? I had so hoped the leaves would have made them sleep a bit longer.  
I knew I had to do something, my friends were in grave danger so I quickly dashed back into the air hoping to find a way to lure the two cannibals into another direction before they notice the hut, hidden in the snow.

I got as close to them as possible hoping they won't notice me, meaning as long Throbb wouldn't turn around everything was fine. Then I heard Goth sniffing around and froze slightly.  
''Hmm, ... I smell a bat,'' he said thoughtfully and sniffed the air again before correcting himself, ''No, many bats.''

''My nose is too cold to smell nothing,'' Throbb complained, his voice sounding nasal.

Goth took a deep breath and grinned. ''Oh, there is a roost full and we are near compadre very near.''

I had heard enough. Even though they hadn't seen the hut yet, they knew the banded one's colony was close. Wasting no time I flew as fast as I could back to the hut, knowing I had to warn them all.

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV~**

As the dance finally ended and the music went off I felt myself being placed back down on the floor, next to the cold fireplace, where I laid there on my back waiting for the world to stop spinning around me.  
Now it was official, never ever in my whole life would I go on a roller coaster ride ever again.  
No way!

''Are you alright?'' I heard Marina asking me with worry in her voice but I felt too sick to answer her.

''She is probably just exhausted from all the fun she had,'' Boris said grinning and roosted on the bookshelf next to her and Cassandra.

Me exhausted? Right. But fun? I was afraid I needed to talk to this guy about his and my definition of fun because I definitely didn't have any.

As my stomach finally settled down I heaved myself into a sitting position with my back leaning against the stone wall of the fireplace. Then I looked up and saw Scirocco standing on the seating surface of an old chair in the middle of the room, raising his voice for everyone to hear.

''Everyone, with the end of this party I'm happy to welcome our two new sisters into our colony.''

The bats around cheered and began talking with each other with excitement all over the place. Most of them send their greetings to me and Marina but mainly to me. They all still thought I was some kind of chosen one who was chosen by Nocturna herself to be the first bat to transform into a fully human. Oh dear!

''As with all who join our colony,'' Scirocco continued after getting back everyone's attention, ''We begin with the renaming.'' Wait, what did he just say? Like him, I looked up at Marina and saw that she was just as confused as I. ''Brightwing, you will now be known as ... Veronica.''

''It's positively you,'' Boris complimented her but Marina seemed to be far from happy about her new name.

''I prefer Marina, thank you,'' she said frowning.

''I would take that other name if I were you,'' Cassandra whispered to, chuckling nervously and I wondered what she was so scared about. The rest of the colony also started whispering around nervously, but it didn't bother Marina.

''There is nothing wrong with my name.''

''Then perhaps you prefer a different kind of initiation?'' Scirocco suggested casually.

''We warned you,'' Boris said in a sing-song voice while looking haughtily at Marina.

''I'll let you keep your name ... Marina, if you bring me that human food.''

Glancing to my left, just a few meters away from the chair, I saw Scirocco pointing down to a pair of mouse traps. One had a piece of cheese waiting on the trigger while the other had the trap around the skeleton of a mouse, showing what happened if you dare to get too close to the traps.  
I knew something was off with this guy. There was no point in getting that cheese. That was just an unneeded dangerous task for his entertainment.

''We are waiting, Veronica,'' Scirocco smirked at Marina, who looked nervously down on the traps.  
There was no way she would be able to get the cheese without facing the same fate as the mouse.  
If only there was a way I could help ... But then I got it. Right on to the top of some wooden shelves hammered to the wall, I spotted a salt shaker right above the two traps.  
Coughing intensely I jolt my head up to the wooden shelves, hoping Marina would notice.  
And it seemed she did.

Wordlessly, she flew past Scirocco up to the shelves and kicked the saltshaker off the edge where it landed perfectly onto the mousetrap, setting it off. Through the force of the snap, the cheese flung through the air before landing with a plop right next to the banded leader on the chair.

Sirocco huffed unimpressed and looked up at Marina, who looked down smiling triumphally.  
''Very clever, Marina,'' he said slowly, ''But I don't want clever bats. I want loyal ones. Repeat after me: I pledge my allegiance to the banded ones.''

Marina hesitated at first before repeating his words with uncertainty. ''I ... pledge my allegiance to the banded ones.''

''I reject all who are not banded.''

I gasped, not believing my ears. Was this guy for real? I looked back up on Marina noticing her looking just as shocked as I. Sciroccos eyes darkened not liking how she stopped repeating his words.

''Repeat after me!'' he said firmly, ''I reject all who are not banded!''

''No!'' Marina snapped, glaring down at him, ''I'm not rejecting Shade. He is my friend just as Vanessa who also doesn't have a band if I may remind you.''

The Greenwing chuckled softly. ''Yeah, that might be true but since she already got blessed by Nocturna to be transformed into a human ...''

''Now, stop it!'' I yelled. That was it. I finally had enough with this nonsense. Getting back up on my feet I glared angrily upon Scirocco, ignoring the questionable look in his eyes.  
''For the last damn time. I'm not and never was a bat chosen by your goddess to become human and I never had a band in the first place. You idiot! I am a human since birth and somehow got shrunk thanks to a weird pearl I've found and this scar on my wrist is from Goth, a cannibal bat from the jungle down south.''

Scirocco shook his head clearly not believing any word I just said.  
''My dear, I'm sure the reason you must think you were never a bat comes from your transformation into a human. It must have cleared out your memory from your previous bat life so you can be ready to start your new life as a human.''

Now, I really had enough and wanted nothing more than away from this place.  
''Come Marina, let's leave!''

The Brightwing nodded and swooped down to grab my hands with her feet ready to leave this place through the chimney only to be blocked by Scirocco.  
''What the?! Hey, let us go!'' I demanded but he didn't move from his spot.

''Scirocco, if they want to go, maybe we should just let them,'' Betty suggested, trying to persuade him but without success.

Right at that moment, Shade burst out of the chimney, breathing heavily.  
''I just ... saw Goth ... and Throbb,'' he called out, panting heavily.

Marina and I gasped in shock.

''Everybody! You've got to get out!'' Shade yelled flying around, ''the giant bats are coming!''

''Giant Bats!?''

''Oh no!''

''The cannibals!''

Panic broke out among the banded bat colony. Only Scirocco stayed calm.  
''The Silverwing is lying. He is jealous of our bands,'' he said loudly, ''Captured him!''

Immediately Shade was cornered by a bunch of bats and turned around, trying to get away from them. Marina and I tried to follow him but Cassandra and Boris blocked our way, together with some other bats. ''Get out of our way!'' I yelled then felt someone grabbing my feet and pulling me away from Marina.

''Hey! Let go!'' I screamed while struggling and kicking but the greenwing, who was no other than Sirocco himself, had me in a tight grip.

''You may be special but I believe I need to teach you a lesson about respect.''  
My eyes widen in fear as I saw the look in his eyes he was giving me.

''Shade, Marina Help!'' I screamed struggling more but with no use. Grabbing me by my arm and hair Scirocco dragged me over to the cupboard under the kitchen area and pushed me through the crack of the double doors.

''You stay here! I'll come back for you later after I dealt with your rebellious brightwing friend.''  
With that Scirocco yanked the strings that held my bun up out of my hair and used it to bind the doorknobs so the cupboard was locked, leaving me in complete darkness.

* * *

 **AN:**

 _ **Oh my, what do we have here? Is this a new chapter? And so soon?**_

 _ **:D XD**_

 _ **Well, I like I said in the author notes in the previews chapter. This chapter was one of the old ones of my first version of Promise of the Night which I didn't need to change too much. The same goes for the next one except for one small part which is why I'll upload it either tomorrow or later depending on my mood.**_


	25. Massacre in the mountains

**Chapter 25: Massacre in the mountains**

* * *

 **~Third Person POV ~**

Thinking everything was fine, Bathsheba led the silverwings over the empty runway at the airport They all followed her blindly, trusting her decision.  
Suddenly a strange droning sound came from above, causing Mercury to look up. To his horror, he saw a human flying machine just about to land right on top of them. ''Look Out!'' he yelled as a warning.

Bathsheba looked up and gasped in shock as she realized what was happening.

All silverwings screamed in panic, split into two separated parts to get out of the machine's way and quickly flew up to a high tower where they roosted together, shaking with fear.

For a second Frieda stared down at the machine before glaring angrily at Bathsheba.  
Instead of looking guilty the chief elder just scowled at her, refusing to admit her mistake that nearly caused the death of the entire colony.

* * *

 **~Marina's POV~**

''Well, Veronica,'' Scirocco smirked down on me while I was being restrained by two of his followers, ''it looks like we have to teach you how to be loyal to the band.''

''Why are doing this? What gives you the right to keep us here as prisoners?'' I asked glaring at him.

''Ts, you certainly don't understand how important it is for banded ones to be together. We can't just lose one of our own.''

''I don't want to be a part of your stupid cult,'' I snapped, ''Tell me where Vanessa is and then let us go.''

Scirocco shook his head, sighing softly. ''I'm afraid, I can not let this happen. You might be just a regular banded bat like the rest of us but your friend is ... special.''

''No she is not. At least not the way you think she is.'' I tried my best to persuade him but it was clear that he wasn't listening to me at all. Shade was right. This guy was nothing more than a complete lunatic. I should have listened to him and Vanessa. Then we wouldn't be in this mess now. Speaking of Vanessa. Where was she? Solicitously I looked around but couldn't find her anywhere.  
What had this guy done to her? Hopefully she was alright, wherever Scirocco had locked her up right now.

With a nod of his head, Scirocco ordered Cassandra and Boris to step closer and I made myself ready to fight if necessary. There was no way I would go down without one.  
But just as they were about to grab me, the door suddenly burst open and a heavy gust of snow and wind blew into the hut, causing me to flinch and close my eyes for a second.  
Then I opened them again I gasped in amazement.

There was a human male in strange green leaves, carrying a round, black object around his shoulder. He came up to the door frame and stood there with a strange humming sound coming from him.

''Who is the one they call Scirocco,'' the human asked and everyone imidatelly pointed down to the  
dumbstrucked long-eared bat.

''The time has come for the transformation! I will lead you now!'' the man said, raising his hand.

''Our new leader!''

''A human?!''

''Who knew?''

Scirocco narrowed his eyes, his mouth twisted. ''Don't listen to him,'' he spoke to the bats, pointing at the man, ''he is not a human!''

I blinked in confusion and took a closer look. What did Scirocco mean? Of course that was a real human ... wait! Hearing the sound of rustling white leaves on the wall I looked up and saw on the first page the image of the exact same man, pointing his thumb up.  
With a gasp turned back to the human in the door frame, seeing him standing in the same posture like the one in the picture. Then I noticed a small figure in a corner behind the door. It was Shade.

My face lid up with relief. This human was an echo projection summoned by Shade to lure the banded bats out of the hut in order to save them from Goth and Throbb. That explained the humming sound and why he sounded so my like Shade. How clever of him.

''Obey me banded ones!'' The projection said, pointing outside, ''You must leave at ones!''

''We should do as the human says,'' Betty told Scirocco but the Greenwing disagreed.

''No!'' he exclaimed, ''Leave here and you will die!''

''Stay and you will die!'' the projection restored forcefully and glitched for a second.

Scirocco gasped as he noticed that. ''It's the Silverwing!'' he yelled up to his colony, ''He is playing a trick! Look, look ... I can do it too!'' He closed his eyes and placed his claws onto his head, trying to concentrate.

Quick-thinking I spread my wings and called out for everyone to follow me outside as I head to the exit.

All bats began screaming in fear and dashed out as fast as they could, while Shade's echo projection slowly faded away.  
One of them, a young purple-colored female fell down to the floor after she got knocked down by one of the others. I landed down to her and helped her back up while urging her to leave.  
Then I spread my wings to get airborne again but a hand suddenly grabbed me roughly by the arm.  
Startled I turned around and looked into Sciroccos angered expression.

* * *

 **~Shade's POV~**

I was so glad that my idea with the echo projection had worked and flew up to the entrance to make sure my friends and everyone else made it out safely.  
Unfortunately, I couldn't see either Vanessa or Marina anywhere. Instead, I saw Betty flying out and flew towards her. ''Hey, where are my friends?'' I asked frantically. Betty looked around, a worried expression on her face.''

''I don't know. I could've sworn I saw Marina flying out like everyone else.''

But where was she then and what about Vanessa? They had to be around here somewhere.  
To make things worse I saw Goth and Throbb getting extremely close by now.  
''Quick, help me get everyone under the roof,'' I said to her and flew off with no further explanations. As everyone was hiding I heard someone landing on the roof above us, followed by the sound of growling and sniffing that grew closer and closer to where we all were.

''Shade?'' I heard Goth growling softly and froze, knowing it wasn't a good sign that he recognized my scent. Biting my lips I quietly prayed to Nocturna that he won't look down to see us.

''Goth, here!'' came Throbb's voice, causing him to turn away again. What Luck!

* * *

 **~Vanessa's POV~**

I kicked and hammered at the door as hard as I could but the cupboard just wouldn't to open.  
I breathed heavily, feeling exhausted and made one last try in freeing myself by pushing against one of the doors with all might. Slowly, very slowly the door finally opened to a small gap.  
Instantly I squeezed myself through, feeling lucky that I was thin enough to fit through. Then I stumbled to the ground and took a look at my surroundings.  
The front door of the chalet was wide open and except for a small group the banded bats were nowhere to be seen. In front of the entrance, I saw Marina being detained by Scirocco.

''Marina!'' I called out, causing the long-eared to turn around, looking surprised to see me out of my prison. Marina yanked her arm free and flew straight towards me while I looked around and spotted a tiny pile of clothes on the other side of the fireplace. My old clothes! I thought happily and run towards them to gather them up before fleeing with Marina.

Suddenly a sinister laugh came from the chimney and to my horror I saw Goth appearing out of it, followed by his cousin Throbb, who went straight to the main entrance and shut the door, trapping everyone inside including me and Marina.

The young brightwing landed beside me in the corner of the fireplace and signified me to be quiet. I nodded fearfully and shifted a little further into the corner.  
Before us, on top of the chair, in the middle of the room stood Goth. Luckily with his back to us and with his large wings wrapped around his body like a majestically cape. He looked up and stared straight at the small group of banded bands, huddling together on top of the bookshelf, trembling with fear.

''Don't worry little ones,'' he said calmly and held up his left arm, ''we are with the band.''

It was like hell broke out. There was screaming everywhere as the banded bats tried to escape the hungry predators. Blind for panic they flew into walls and furniture and stumbled against each other. The two cannibals, however, laughed like they were having the best time of their life.

Utilizing the stampede, Marina wasted no time, grabbed my hand with her feet and dashed towards the chimney. We were almost out when one of the panic-stricken bats rammed against me, causing me to lose my grip and fall back to the ground.

''Vanessa!?'' I heard Marina calling out my name but with all this mess going on it was hard to find out where she was. Bats were screaming and fluttering all over the place. I had to hide or fear being overrun by one of them. Or worse get caught by Goth or Throbb.  
Quickly I spotted the cupboard I was held captive in earlier and dashed towards it.

Wasting no time I squeezed myself through the small gap between the doors and into the darkness. There I sat down for a moment and tried to calm down. My whole body was tense with my heart beating fast in my chest. I was scared someone would open the doors and crawled further into the back. A frightened hiss made me spun around and to my shock, I noticed a pair of eyes glaring in the darkness. There was someone with me in the darkness. I opened my mouth ready to scream but got quickly interrupted by the bat in front of me.

''P-please don't shout!''  
It was a young browning female. Her golden colored eyes widen in fear. Her whole body was shaking. ''Please, if you make a sound they might hear us and ...''  
Suddenly the left door got violently torn open and a little bit of light came in. Not much since that chalet Itself was pretty dark inside. But it was enough to see the contours of Throbb's head.  
Startled I crawled as far out of his sight as possible. But the Vampyrum turned his attention alone towards the poor browning. He grabbed her by her wing and forcefully pulled her out while chuckling evilly.

''HELP!'' she cried out and desperately dug her claws into the wood and reached out for me. ''HELP ME! PLEASE!'' I tried to grab her but Throbb was too strong. He pulled her so violently into the open that the door slammed shut and I sat back in total blackness. The next thing I heard was earsplitting cries of pain and agony mixed with along with the disgusting sound of ripping flesh and ferociously chewing and smacking.

I was terrified. All those cries, all those killing. I wanted to be away from this place right now. But I needed to wait. Shutting my eyes tight I pressed my hands to my ears with my knees pulled to my chest and started counting to twenty. Only then I allowed myself to try sneaking out again since it got a bit quieter on the other side. Cautiously I pushed open the door and looked around. There were dark red spots on the ground but no sight of Throbb or the poor brownwing. I gulped thinking of her and hoped it wasn't my fault that Throbb ate her. Not that he noticed me running over here and followed me. There were still bats flying around in panic but much less than before.

I desperately looked around, trying to find Marina, hoping she was alright and run across the room. I used every possible spot to hide even just for a few seconds and kept alert of my surroundings. I felt the urge to call out Marina's name but decided against it not wanting Goth or Throbb to accidentally hear me instead. Therefore, I kept quiet and continued running through the hut. Eventually, I reached the bathroom where I took my bath in earlier. The door was still ajar, so I decided to take a quick look inside wondering if Marina was maybe inside.

''Marina?'' I called out but not too loud in fear to be heard by the wrong people. ''Marina are you here?'' Glancing around I spotted a small pile of folded laundry in a corner and quickly recognized it as my old clothes.  
 _Perfect!_ I thought happily and rushed over to get them. I had barely grasped my white cloak as a winged hand grabbed me by my arm and pulled me away, making me let go of my cloak.

''I knew I would find you here my lady.''

Recognizing the voice I turned around and saw that Scirocco was holding me tightly in his arms.

''You thought you could run off just like that? Forget it! You are coming with me.''

Despite my shouting and struggling the Greenwing managed to get airborne with me hanging in his claws and fluttered towards the window in order to escape through a broken part in the glass.  
Right at that moment Goth came inside and got in our way.

''Well, well, well what do we have here. Trying to leave without even saying hello señorita?'' he chuckled sinisterly.

''H-hey get out of our way you...you murderer.''

It was a rather puny attempt but at least Scirocco tried his best to sound brave. But the huge, muscular bat just stared at him with disinterest and turned his attention to me back again.

''It would be a shame if you didn't stay for dinner,'' he said and hungrily licked his lips. I frowned at him and did the only and possible most stupid thing I could think of at that moment. Still, in Scirocco's grip, I swung a little back like on a swing and kicked Goth the grin out of his face.

''Argh!'' the Vampyrum cried out in pain and stumbled a bit away. Startled by what happened Scirocco accidentally let go of my arms and I fell down to the ground, screaming. Luckily there was a pile of towels right under me which cushioned the impact.  
The Greenwing dove under, trying to grab me again but Goth pushed him out of the way growling furiously. I wasted no time and hurried down from the towels before Goth could catch me with his claws and dashed back to my clothes. I grasped my cloak but before I could grab the others as well I got tackled and pinned to the ground.

''Now, you cannot escape señorita!''

I gasped seeing Goth's enraged face hovering above me. His razor-sharp teeth only centimeters away from my nose. He tore his head back and opened his mouth widely, ready to bite my head of any second. Just then Scirocco crashed against Goth, causing him to let me go.  
Furious to see me running off again, Goth roared in anger and began to attack the weaker greenwing. Scirocco tried his best to fight against Goth but of course he was no match for the cannibal.  
Not wanting to witness the carnage I hurried outside, my white cloak still in my hands and crushed right into another bat and fell to my bottom.

''Ouch!''

''Ah! Hey!...wait! Vanessa!?''

I opened my eyes and looked up into the relieved face of Marina.

''Oh, Vanessa I'm so happy to see you. Where in Nocturna's name have you been?''

I shook my head. ''Doesn't matter let's get out of here!''

Marina nodded, not asking anymore questions and grabbed me by my hand with her feet before flying out of the chimney before anyone noticed us.

Finally outside Marina flew as fast as she could to bring us both in a safe distance away from the chalet.  
I held on tight to her feet and closed my eyes shut, trying to ignore the painful screams of terror and fright coming from behind us. I may not have liked them so much, especially that superciliously jerk Scirocco but even someone like him didn't deserve such an end.  
However, it didn't take long until we caught up with Shade, Betty and the rest of the banded bats, who luckily made it out safely.

''Guys are you alright? What happened with the others?'' Shade asked worriedly while flying over to us.

''They ... didn't make it.'' I said softly, looking down as Marina sighed sadly. Shade sighed as well. For a while, we just flew silently at the top of the colony towards the south.  
Soon after we landed on a cliff side, taking a rest and explained as good as we could what had happened back in the hut while I put my warm cloak over my new dress.

''So, you were the human?'' Betty asked, looking at Shade with astonishment.

''Uh, ... it was an echo projection,'' he replied, ''just like Sciroccos''

''Better than Sciroccos,'' Marina said smiling. Shade returned the smile, happy about her compliment.

''I wish I could've seen it too,'' I felt a little disappointed that I was unable to witness Shades improvement in echo-projection sooner. If the door would have just opened a little sooner.  
Marina put a hand on my shoulder and gave me a comforting smile.  
''It's alright Vanessa, we know you can't see echo-projections because of being a human and all.''

''Well, actually ... I can,'' I confessed.

''Say what?'' Marina and Shade both gasped and looked at me in confusion.

''Since when?''

''I started to see a blurry vision of Shade's echo-projection of a wolf back before we went up to the mountains and then I saw Sciroccos echo-projection of a human. That was more clear but also a bit glitching. Also, I told you that I saw it Marina but you didn't want to believe me, thinking it was all real.

''Now I believe you,'' Marina said smiling and I smiled back at her.

''Well, I guess we will be migrating together now that everything is fine,'' Betty suggested, motioning towards all the other banded bats.

Shades shook his head, ''Trust me you don't wanna fly with us.''

''We are kinda like fugitives Betty- uh, I mean Penelope,'' Marina said, correcting herself.

I nodded. ''Yes, those two cannibal bats, Goth and Throbb, they are after us and General Brutus and his owls are hunting us down too. It's safer for all of you if we split our ways here.''

''But why would the owls do that? Isn't it against the law to hunt bats during the night?''  
Shade, Marina and I exchanged an uncomfortable look with each other. From all what we had told them, there had been one tiny detail we left out. Plus another thing which wouldn't have been a problem if they had still the chalet as a place to call home.

''That's a long story, to be honest,'' I tried to explain, ''Let's just say the owls are out of sorts with us bats.''

''But that's all the fault of Goth and Throbb,'' Shade said.

''I'm sorry we can't do much to help but recommend you to stay alerted for every bird in the sky in the night.''

''Don't worry, you guys have done enough for us already,'' Penelope said smiling, ''If it weren't for you, we would all be dead by now. But you gave us a chance to live at least a little bit longer.''  
I gulped softly, not quite liking the sound of it.

''Oh, also we have a friend. Ursa a white black bear,'' Shade said, ''Look for her in the valley. She will find you a safe place for the winter.''

''I wish there was something I could do to repay you,'' she added.

Shade thought for a moment. ''Have you ever flown through wolf-ears?'' he asked.

''Wolf ... ears?'' Penelope asked blinking in confusion. ''No sorry but I know about some wolfs living further southeast but are you sure you want to go there?''

''Well, we don't have much of a choice, I suppose,'' Shade said while Marina shook her head with a sigh.

''Well, good luck then. Hopefully, we are able to meet each other again one day.''

''That would be great. Goodbye!''

''Bye!''

After we all said our far wells to everyone Marina and Shade took off again with me hanging on Shades feet. We kept flying into the direction Penelope suggested but there wasn't a single wolf in sight.

''Are you sure this is the right way?'' Marina asked Shade after we landed on another crevice for a short rest. '' I mean, don't get me wrong. I just don't want to waste any more time before the sun gets up and won't be much longer before dawn.''

''I know.'' Shade sighed hanging his head down. Suddenly we heard the howling of wolfs and looked down to see a dozen of them, gathered before the entrance of a cave in one of the deep slopes.  
He looked at Marina.

''I'm not going down there!'' she said, vigorously shaking her head.

''What else can we do?''

''It's suicide!''

''But my mother sang me wolfs!''

''Wolf-ears!'' Marina cried out all of a sudden, and then she started laughing.  
Shade and I looked at her puzzled. What the hell was wrong with her now? Did the cold infect her head or something? I wondered. Instead of telling us what was going on, Marina kept on laughing and hopped up and down while pointing at something behind Shade.

''Marina, what's wrong with you? Why are you laughing?'' Shade asked worriedly and tried to get her to stop, but she just kept shouting and giggling  
Still confused about her behavior I turned around to take a look at what she was pointing at and ... laughed. Shade noticed it and looked at us as if we had finally lost our mind because of the cold.

''Wolf-ears!'' We both shouted, pointing insistently into the same direction.  
Finally, Shade turned around and set his eyes on two mountains in the distance. Their peaks curled in on each other, causing them to look like the ears of a large white wolf.

''Wolf-ears...'' Shade said softly then he too, burst out laughing as well.

* * *

About two hours of flying we eventually reached the glacial peaks and were full of hope to reach the destination of our journey.

''You really think my echo-projection was better than Sciroccos?'' Shade asked Marina.

''It convinced those banded bats, didn't it?''

''Not all of them,'' I said softly and squeezed my eyes shut at the horror I experienced back at the chalet. Above me my both friends sighted with sympathy.  
Suddenly, there was a strange tingling sound, coming from behind us, sounding like wind chimes.  
''What's that?'' I asked as we turned around in confusion just to gasp in shock.

Quickly, we dove downwards and hide under a large slab of stone. Peaking out from under it, we saw Goth and Throbb flying with triumphantly smiles on their faces. But much worse were the sight of the dozens of small silver bands that decorated their wings which jingled through the air.  
Shaking with fear we three huddled together, hoping they wouldn't notice us.

''Are you sure it was their scent?'' we heard Throbb asking his cousin doubtfully.

Goth huffed and landed on top of the very same stone slope, we were hiding underneath. He grabbed the edge with his claws and took a deep breath through his nose. His long bloody colored hair waving through the wind. ''Oh, yes,'' he said sinister, ''Of that, there is no doubt.''  
With that he got back up with a grunt and flung himself back into the air while Throbb momentarily landed on the same spot he was before, letting out a deep sigh before following him into the night.  
Shade, Marina and I kept hiding under the stone slope until we were sure they were far ahead of us.

''As long as that noise stays ahead of us, we know where they are,'' Marina said looking at us while I nodded.

''But in the meantime, we have to find food,'' reminded us Shade before grabbing my hands with his feet and soared back into the sky, followed by Marina.

* * *

''It's Goths bands again. They're way ahead,'' Marina said as we kept on flying through the forest covered in thick mist.

''Nice tracking Marina,'' Shade grinning, ''Goth's not so smart after all.''

We flew for a few more hours while the jingling sound grew louder around us until it eventually stopped. Feeling nervous, we landed on a broken tree stub and cautiously looked around, trying to see something through the heavy fog.

''They're not flying,'' Shade mumbled with a frown and send out sound waves through the area in order to get a picture of what was going on.

 _I don't like this._ I thought nervously, feeling like I was in some jumps scare video game. I could already see someone leaping at us out of nowhere any second and flinched as the wind picked up, causing my hair to get into my face. Then we heard the jingling sound again.  
Having a bad feeling about this I looked up at the trees just like Shade and Marina and froze. My hazel green eyes widen in shock.  
Right on cue, the fog lifted, revealing dozens of silver bands hanging on tree branches right above us. Imidatelly we took off again, screaming in fright and raced off as quick as we could until we stopped to hide under the roots of a giant maple tree when a shadow flew over us.

''Guys, relax! It's just another leaf,'' Shade said smiling and glanced after the brown leaf, dancing away through the air.

''That's not a leaf,'' Marina whispered fearfully as we heard the sound of flapping close to us, ''those are wings flapping. Really big wings!''

Wasting no time we ducked deeper under the roots of the tree. Seconds later, an owl passed by not noticing us and disappeared back into the mist.

''Ok, that was creepy,'' I admit, still feeling afraid.

''Let's get out of here before we get caught,'' Marina said.

I nodded and was just about to grab on to her feet as we heard another set of wings flapping closely.

Was this another owl? The sound came closer and closer. Then it suddenly stopped. Whatever it was, it was close. Too close.

Shade, Marina and I exchanged a short look. All three of us were tense and ready to run off at any moment. Slowly and carefully I stepped back, closer to the tree as something poked me on the shoulder.

''Hey!''

''AAAAAAAHHH!'' I jumped right into Shades arms, startled at whatever touched me, causing my friends to scream as well.

''AAAAAHHH!''

''AAAAAAAAAHHHH!''

''AAAAaaaaahhh...wait what are we all screaming for?''

''Ah... uh?'' Cautiously I opened my eyes back up again and saw that there was indeed an owl sitting right before us. But it wasn't any owl. It was ...

''Orestes!''

The young owl smiled. ''Hey friends.''

* * *

 **AN:**

 _ **Surprise, a new chapter and so soon ^^**_

 _ **Unfortunately, this was the last chapter I could use from my old version. (I just added a little bit more to it in the middle) Therefore the next chapter will take a bit longer again.**_

 _ **I really glad for all the reviews I'm getting so far. It really makes me happy to know that there are people liking my story and I hope you'll like this one and the future ones as well. ^^ :)**_


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